


Rise Of Wanheda

by yaraktan



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Slow but-not-so-slow burn, We'll see where the story leads, baddass Heda, baddass Wanheda, natblida but no blackblood, no AI
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-16
Updated: 2017-06-16
Packaged: 2018-10-19 11:12:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 35,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10638666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yaraktan/pseuds/yaraktan
Summary: After three months of self-imposed exile and freedom, Clarke returns to Arkadia to take the reins. Meanwhile, our favorite queen of north plots world domination.





	1. Return of the Wanheda.

It has been two months since Clark left Camp Jaha, newly called Arkadia behind. Two months of living in nature, no, adapting to it. She barely had any contact with people, and most of those contacts were out of necessity. At first, she thought she left because she felt guilty but after the first week, she found that she felt no guilt at all. Not one bit. And in truth, that's why she left.

Now dead people of Mount Weather didn't haunt her like she expected. Maybe because she's really this Wanheda the grounders now call her, or maybe she's a bad person. But all in all, she was content, oddly so. She still felt bad about the innocents, like Maya who had done nothing but help those that were captured by Cage and his personal monster Dr. Tsing. But Clarke wasn't the reason they are dead, Cage was. It was his decisions that led to the annihilation of a small society. It was his innate monstrosity that pushed Clarke and her friends to the brink of death, and they responded. It's the rule of nature that when you corner an animal, wound it and threaten its family, it'll lash out.

It was two months of reckoning for Clarke. Two months of analyzing everything she did, good and bad, right and wrong, and two months of getting to know this new person she has become.

At first, it was a struggle. She was never the athletic type. She was always more brains than brawn. She had never even started a fire, let alone hunt, gut and cook an animal. But as always, she was a fast study and soon enough, she became hunter even Trikru would admire. She only had a gun and a knife on her when she left. Now, through craft and trade, she has a simple bow and a beautifully crafted sword.

Whenever she thought about going back to her people, she felt her anxiety spark up. Not because she felt guilty for leaving them, she didn't. Not because she was afraid of rejection. She felt anxiety because she's free now and she doesn't want to give that up. How could she? When the second she's back, all she'll receive are never ending questions and endless blaming. Why would she want to go back to a life where she'll always try to fix other people's fuck ups and she'll always be blamed for every bad thing. Wasn't that what Octavia did? Her mother did? Raven… No, she's not going back. Not yet at least.

It was after her first month of aloneness when she discovered the cave she now called home. It is small and incredibly well hidden behind a small waterfall which meant she has constant access to a water source. It also meant a lot of animals.

Lately, she became a morning person, much to her surprise. She loved the early morning mist. But today, she woke up surprisingly late. She got up slowly, stretching her muscles, and started a fire immediately. She ate her breakfast berries and a couple of nuts. Once the breakfast was over, she left her cave to go for a run and check on her traps. She loved running and exercising now. It helped clear her mind and building necessary muscles was always a welcome bonus.

She had two dozen traps laid around the cave. Fifteen for small animals. Five for larger ones. Thought those five traps were more of a defensive effort, to try and dissuade any danger from coming too close to her new home. Her small traps had two rabbits and a squirrel.

After tagging them and bagging them, she set out to check her defensive traps. She never had to redo them, she never needed to. To her luck, hunters, animal or human, never came this way… until today. She could hear the growling of an animal from hundred meters away. She drew her bow immediately. She slowly made her way to the noise to see a large panther circling a man hanging from a rope by his feet. She aimed with her bow. She was a good shot now, she had to be. She took out the panther with one well aimed shot to its neck. She slowly made her way to it and made sure it was dead by simple cutting its throat.

Clarke thought about killing the man, cutting him loose was a risk. Letting him hang was even a bigger risk, he was making too much noise. So she cut the rope and let him fall. He fell head first with a loud thud and for a second, Clarke thought she really killed him. She checked his pulse and found one. She thought about her next step. She couldn't leave him here, he would die, and would attract big animals. She couldn't fix his leg here, her herbs and needle were back at the cave. "Cave it is then."

It took her nearly an hour to carry and drag him back to the cave. She put him on the furs she was using as a makeshift bed and strip him of his sword and two knives. The fire was dying out, so she fed it. She cut out his pant leg and cleaned the wound, or it turns out wounds. His leg was clawed fiercely, from this close-up, it was clear. The wound had nothing on Clarke though. She was used fixing these kinds of wounds, if she wasn't, she would be long dead by now. She cleaned her needle and started on stitching. It took nearly another hour. After she was finished she started on slow cooking a rabbit and went to the waterfall to clean up.

She made her way back to the cave and tied the man's hand behind his back, then went on to tie his legs. It wasn't enough, he could easily get out of the ropes here but it was enough for now. She had to go back to get the panther, leaving it to rot was not a luxury she had. It was too valuable of a tradable to leave behind. So she made her way to it and shouldered it. It was another hour before she made it back to the cave to find the man awake, examining the cave. Throwing the panther to the ground and taking out her gun. "Are we going to have a problem?"

The man gazed her carefully, calculating his options, eyeing the cave entrance. "No."

"Good." She made her way to the fire pit and finalized the meal for two and handed the man his food before making her way back to the cave wall opposite of the man. She threw one of her knives next to the man. It was a risk, arming the man but it was a dull and very short knife that would not be a good weapon. He immediately cut the ropes that were restraining him and threw back the knife and started on the rabbit.

"So who are you?" Clarke asked. "And what are you doing here?"

"I'm Roan kom Azgeda. I was hunting that damn animal and caught in the trap I presume was yours."

"What are you doing here? This is Trikru land."

"I could ask you the same thing Clarke kom Skaikru."

It took Clarke nearly a minute to school her features and hide her shock. How can this man know who she is? Was he looking for her? Was Ice Queen looking for her? Why? How does Ice Queen know she's not with her people? Does she spy on Arkadia? Of course, she does.

"How do you know who I am?"

" _Wanheda fell from the skies in a ball of fire. Her hair is of sun and her eyes are of the sky. She is as strong in spirit as she is beautiful. She burned the mountain men alive_. The legends do you no justice."

This time it took her more than a minute to hide her surprise. She expected the grounders to know who she is and what she did never expect to be a part of a legend. "Wanheda? What does that mean?"

"Commander of death."

That seems about right, she thought. After being a part of nearly a thousand death in the span of a couple of months, even she could believe she commands death if she tried hard enough.

"Makes sense. I mean I never expected anyone to make me commander of flowers or anything."

That earned her a snort. "So, you want to command an army of flowers then?"

"No, what… Never mind. Why is an Ice Nation warrior roaming the forests of Trikru?"

"Powerful people are looking for you Wanheda."

'So Ice Queen really is looking for me?' she thought. "She wants to capture me and what? Kill me?"

"She does. But I'm not here for my mother. I am here because the commander told me to."

It took Clarke longer than she would've liked to truly understand what Roan said. 'Mother?' 'Commander told him to?' "Wait, what?! You are? She is? What?"

"And here I thought you were smart. _Gonasleng_ , do you speak it?" Roan snarked.

"I should've just killed you," Clarke smirked.

"Why didn't you?"

"Would it be weird if I told you I don't like killing?"

To that, Roan barked a laugh Clarke never expected from a grounder.

"Commander of death doesn't like killing?"

"Hey, I never said I am the commander of death."

"Guess so."

"You won't take me anywhere, you know?"

"I won't?"

"No, you won't."

"Why is that?"

Clarke just shrugged. And continued on her food. After finishing her food and resting a bit, Clarke went out to practice with her sword. She liked practicing with it, it made her feel strong, stronger than her old self ever felt.

She was aware Roan was watching her from the tree he was sitting against. "You are worse than a _yongon_ of four summers."

" _Yongon?_ "

"Child."

"Gee, thanks."

"You are holding it like you would a hammer. Keep it angled and don't grip it like you want to choke it. Keep your hand relaxed."

"Okay. how is this?"

"If you are the leader of Skaikru, how are you all alive?"

"Teach me then."

Rest of the day went on with Roan teaching Clarke how to use a sword. By the time they decided to stop, the sun was already set. They made their way back to the cave and ate one more small meal and Clarke changed Roan's bandages. It felt weird having another person in the cave. Especially when that other person's goal was to kidnap. But Clarke felt safe nonetheless.

 

 

 

 

They spent next week or so in relative quiet. They woke up, went for a run checked the traps and took whatever pray was in it, gathered berries and nuts, practiced. When it was too dark to train but not so late that they needed to sleep, they spent their time telling stories of a past world and brushing up Clarke's Trigedasleng. Roan also helped her take the panther to Niylah's trading post. They got some herbs, furs, and alcohol. It was there she found out about Skaikru's suddenly increased search for her.

Roan was a good teacher, it was showing on how much Clarke made progress. After a week of training on simple defensive moves, they started training on more complex ones and some offensive strategies. She also started extra, muscle building activities on Roan's suggestion. "You are too weak sky girl, " he sai, "you need muscle to beat your opponents."

It was at the end of the second week when Clarke finally asked Roan why he was still there. "I have nowhere else to be, " he said with a shrug. "The question is, why are you?"

"If I go back, I'd have to lead. I don't want that. At least, not for now."

"So you let them think you are dead?"

"I… If I go back, I'd have to stay."

"That is if there is still a Skaikru camp to go back to."

"What? Why wouldn't there be?"

"Like I said, mother wants you. She wouldn't wait for a second to kill every last one of Skaikru to get to you."

"She can try. I think we proved that we are not easy to kill."

"You proved that. Why do you think they are looking for you all of a sudden?"

"I… Do you think they are in trouble?"

"Only one way to find out."

They spent another week in the cave before Clarke finally couldn't take it anymore. She had to find out. It's one thing to leave Arkadia behind. It was another to let it be destroyed by a power hungry bitch. They packed up a little food to bring with them and some of the furs. Clarke loved this new home she created for herself. She was just going to Arkadia to make sure everyone was okay, not to stay.

So they made their way to Arkadia.

They were half way there when Clarke realized Roan was still with her. She knew he was but she never thought about why. "Why are you still here? With me I mean."

"I told you the commander ordered me to take you to her."

"But you didn't."

"You will eventually have to go there. By staying with you, I'm making sure I get my reward at least."

It was a clear lie, Clarke was sure of it. But whatever reason Roan had to follow her around, she was glad. She grew fond of him. He was a good companion to have.

"So what's the plan? Go to the gate and say 'hi, I'm back'?" Roan asked.

"No. I think we should wait for a hunting group to leave and hope my friends are with the group."

So they did. They got close to the gate and waited on a tree, hidden but able to see. It was next morning by the time they saw a hunting party leave. Not a party per say, Octavia, Lincoln, and Monty.

The duo trailed them for half an hour without them realizing it. It was surprising really, Lincoln was usually very perceptive.

"Hi, guys," Clarke said, finally getting close enough to make herself known.

Octavia and Monty drew their weapons in an instant. So did Roan.

"Wow, wow. It's me. Roan, put it down." She glared at Roan. He obeyed reluctantly.

"Clarke! Oh my god, you are alive!" Monty jumped at her. If she didn't know any better, she would be afraid that it's an attack. He hugged her fiercely and painfully.

"Yeah, I am."

"Where were you? Why haven't you come back? Whe-" That's when Monty finally realized they were not alone. "Who's the stud?"

"Come on Monty, it's Lincoln. Octavia's boyfriend?" Clarke smirked at the Roan.

"Thanks. I'll have you know I had a lot of women running after me back north."

"That's because you are a prince."

That's when Lincoln finally took Roan's appearance in. the scars, the attitude, the whole package. "Azgeda!" he hissed and drew his sword.

"Lincoln, he's with me. This is Roan, prince of Azgeda."

"You know her bitch of a mother is hunting for you, right?" Octavia deadpanned. Clarke didn't expect Octavia to be excited about seeing her, but she didn't expect her to be this cold.

"Yeah, I know. Sorry man but she's right, your mother is kind of a bitch."

"No arguments here, " Roan said with a shrug.

"Where were yo, Clarke?" Lincoln asked, still somewhat unsure of Roan.

"Around. I needed time to myself. I still do."

Monty seemed to understand the subtext. "You are not coming back, are you?"

"I don't know." A deafening silence took hold. Even the forest seemed to hold its breath. "How are things at camp?"

"You would know if you didn't turn your back on us and betrayed us!" Octavia yelled, finally showing emotion. Lincoln put a hand on her shoulder to calm her.

"I didn't betray anyone O. I needed to get away. Now tell me, how are things?"

"Shitty." O said, with a sad tone only someone who really knows her, someone from the 100 would hear.

Monty went on to explain what's going on in camp. They were still treating the delinquents as criminals. Well, no surprise there. The grounders were staying away, still no surprises. They found Farm Station and Monty's mother. Now, that's a surprise. Before Clarke can even ask, Monty continued on explaining how Pike, with the help of Monty's mother, was pushing for an all out war with the grounders, all of them.

"What?! Are they insane?! Are they trying to get everyone killed?! No way!" Clarke couldn't help but yell.

"You can't really blame them. They were in the Azgeda." Monty said, glancing nervously at Roan.

"Clarke, you have to come back. You know I'm not your biggest fan but your mom and Kane can't keep them in check much longer." O said with a conceded voice.

"No, I can't come back. Not yet at least."

"What do you mean you can't come back?! Are you really planning on running around in the wild with your boy toy while Pike and his goons get us all killed?!"

"No, I'm not. Roan is not my boy toy. No. Wait. No." Clarke mumbled, blood rushing to her cheeks. She took a deep breath to collect her thoughts. Pike was ruining everything. He had to be stopped him but how? She was away for so long that she has nearly no say now. She needs a leverage. "Okay, I'm not coming back yet. Even if I did, I have no political capital to stop Pike."

"So what? You are just going to give up?!" Octavia was always good at angering people and pushing them. She would make an excellent interrogator, Clarke thought.

"No, I'm going to wait for him to screw up." She turned to Monty "I need a radio Monty, one they won't listen so I can contact you easily and we can plan."

"Okay, take mine. But Clarke, they are really close to screwing things up for good. I heard my mom talk about how they were testing soils so they can determine where to plant crops."

"That's good, that'll increase the efficiency of what you plant."

"No, you don't understand. They are planning on invading a village and killing everyone in it." Monty said with a resigned sadness in his face. He loves his mother, that much is clear but not this new hateful and murderous one.

"Which village?"

"I don't know. She didn't tell me."

Clarke thought about what they could do. "Okay, Monty, I'm gonna need you to find out which village. Then, I'm going to need all of you to keep an eye on them. They will want to move soon, I need to warn the village before they do but not too early."

"What do you mean not too early? They'll kill innocents!" Octavia said, not with anger this time. Clarke's determination to help might be the reason.

"If we warn them early on, Trikru will start a war we can't win. We need to do this carefully. We need to stop them from killing innocents but we also need to show Trikru that we are not a threat to them. We need to show them we are willing to abide by the truce and punish those who go against it."

They went on to argue about what to do, who to include. They decided to meet in the same place tomorrow with the addition of Kane, Bellamy, both Miller Jr., and his father. Monty would stay behind with Raven and couple of trusted delinquents to try to figure out what the plan was and warn them if the status quo changes. They also decided to keep Abby in the dark for now so she won't try to stop them or persuade Clarke to return just yet. After the planning was over, Clarke and Roan went on to help their hunt which was a great success. They returned with twice the animals they could normally hunt in a span of an afternoon, of course having two extra pairs of hands helped immensely.

After they said goodbye to Clarke's friends, Roan and Clarke found themselves a clearing close enough to Arkadia that in a case of danger they could make their way there but far enough that any wandering patrol wouldn't see them. Though the winter was fast approaching, they decided against erecting a tent. They spent the rest of the evening training on Clarke's fighting, both with sword and without it. She was getting quite good at it too, much to her surprise.

"You are improving with the sword," Roan said, his voice somewhat impassive but still laced with a little pride.

"I have a good teacher," Clarke smirked.

"Of course you have. Not many can say they were trained by the best swordsman of Azgeda."

"Don't be so modest please," Clarke said, unable to keep huffing a laughter. "You must be excited."

"Why would I be excited?"

"You'll get your reward soon enough."

"Am I?"

"Well, to deal with this Pike mess I'll have to go back. Hell, I might even overthrow our current leader while at it. Well, after that, I'll need to meet with Lexa to talk about new terms of an alliance."

"I thought you were the leader of your people?"

"Nah, I never was. I mean I was but I wasn't, you know? My mother is the chancellor. I was perceived as the leader because I was leading the original hundred that was sent down. That's why Lexa thought me as the leader."

"And now you want to become the real leader?" Roan looked up from the knife he was twirling in his hand.

"Not really, but I don't have a choice if I want to stop a war. My mother is not a good leader. She is too stubborn, too short minded to lead well and people see it. That's the only reason Pike could be this close to a successful coup. I want to protect them and to do that, I need to lead."

Roan's eyes shined with understanding. He was a similar soul after all. A wanderer who can see how bad a ruler his mother really is.

"And after we take over Arkadia, we should do the same with Azgeda," Clarke smirked. "I bet you'd be ten times better a king than your mother is as queen."

"Easier said than done."

"But it can be done. I'm sure Lexa wouldn't mind."

"How do you imagine we do that?" Roan asked with sort of hope Clarke never saw him show.

"We'll figure something out."

After that, they spent the night in a relatively quiet, Clarke taking the first watch to make sure of their safety.

 

 

 

They spent the next morning hunting while they waited for a news from Arkadia, managing to capture a deer and two rabbits. They spent rest of their time with small talk and preparation. It was the first time in months that Clarke was walking around with a loaded gun tucked into her waist. It was nearly afternoon when the radio crackled alive with Raven's voice much to Roan's shock. "Clarke? Are you there?"

"Hi Raven"

"You are really alive! I mean… of course you are. Octavia said you were but… Dammit. Where were you? Why didn't you reach out? Why did you go? Why…"

"Raven, calm down. We will have enough time to discuss this mess is dealt with."

"Okay, let's begin 'Operation Screw Pike'! The group is on their way to the rendezvous point. E.T.A half an hour."

"On our way. By the way, Raven, to be safe, let's use acronyms for now."

"Will do. We missed you, you know?"

"I missed you too gorgeous." Clarke quipped.

"You really know how to stroke my ego, don't you?"

Clarke couldn't help the relief that was washing over her. She missed Raven. Raven who was always the genius. Raven whose bone marrow mountain men extracted. Raven whose love Clarke killed. Raven who could always find a way to lighten the mood. "I do. Anyway, How are things regarding where and when the incident will occur?"

"Where, we don't know yet. But they seemed to be on edge. I'd say we have a week at most before action. Are you sure about this? We will have to cut really close for this to work."

"Don't worry, we'll have some help."

The duo made their way to the meeting point, the same spot as yesterday. By the time they got there, the group consisting of Kane, Bellamy, Octavia, Lincoln and father and cub Miller were already there. The second Bellamy saw her, he took off and trapped Clarke in a most bone-crushing hug she had ever experienced. It took Octavia's warning and Clarke's unnaturally red face to convince Bellamy to let go.

"Bell, I understand wanting to kill her but wait until we got rid of Pike." Octavia quipped.

"Gee, thanks, O." Clarke breathed out or tried to breathe out.

"Sorry," Bell said, a little red now with a hint of embarrassment. He seemed to gather himself quickly. "If you don't want to die from a hug, don't keep us worried for this long."

"Duly noted."

"It's great to see you are okay Clarke," Kane said while Clarke went on to hug Miller Jr.

"It's good to see you too. You as well Sergeant Miller." Sr. Miller, never a man of too many words answered with a firm nod. "I'd love to chat more but we have more pressing matters at hand."

"Yes, Octavia filled us in on your plan. Clarke, are you sure this is the best way to handle this? Someone can easily get hurt." Kane asked.

"I can't think any other way of stopping them without a bloodshed, can you?"

"We could just arrest them," Bellamy said, without real conviction.

"We can't. They haven't done anything wrong yet. For know, all they are guilty of doing is trash talking towards the grounders. We know they plan to act but we can't prove it." Clarke answered. "This is the only way to make sure we stop Pike and his goons for good. This way, we will prevent unnecessary bloodshed and we will show Trikru that we don't want a war."

After that, they went on to discuss finer details of the plan, who will do what and when. They discussed logistics and possible villages they might attack, who supports Pike. It took them two hours to finalize the plan, more accurately, plans. They determined that there were two possible villages Pike might attack, one to the east and one to the south of Arkadia, both reachable by two hours of walk. They also discussed how many people Pike would send to attack. They agreed that the group sent to attack couldn't be larger than ten.

They were done the planning and just reminiscing when the radio sparked alive with Raven's voice all of a sudden. "Clarke! Clarke! They are on the move! You have to hurry. They are going to the village to the east, I think. Ten of them, Pike is not with them."

"Raven, are you sure it's to the east?" Clarke asked, suddenly ready for action.

"Their route seems that way! You have to hurry."

"Okay, we have to improvise. Roan, Lincoln, you are with me. We will warn the village. Kane, Bellamy, you will follow them from behind. Make sure they don't see you. Keep your distance. Stay at least ten minutes behind them. Sergeant Miller, you and your son will go to the other village but do not engage with the village. Lay low and wait, In case they don't go to the east, you will need to stop them. Any questions?"

"Wait, what about me?" Octavia shrieked. Clearly upset, thinking she's being left behind.

"I need you to go to TonDC, O, and tell Indra what's going on. Tell her to send warriors to both villages but make sure she comes to the eastern one. That's the more likely target. I'd send Lincoln with you but..."

"Will do boss."

"Alright, let's move out. Keep radio silence." With that, everyone moved out to their respective positions. Clarke, with Lincoln and Roan on tow. It took them nearly an hour of running at half speed to reach the edge of the village and Clarke couldn't help but be thankful for all those hours of training and running. She sent Roan and Lincoln to the clear path towards the village Pike's group would likely use and she made her way into the village. She was surprised that the villagers didn't seem to realize her existence at first. 'I really must look like a grounder now' she thought. But after a couple of minutes, the metaphorical penny finally dropped and cries of 'Skaikru' was heard.

She immediately raised her hands to show she didn't intent to attack. She sank on her knees and waited for the village leader. He was a middle-aged man, couple years younger than Kane at most, with long, simply braided black hair that has some gray streaks. He regarded her with a calm but ready to act manner. "What are you doing here sky girl?" he asked, with no animosity in his voice, much to Clarke's surprise.

"Are you the village leader?" Clarke asked.

"Yes. I am Semet."

"I am Clarke kom Skaikru. You may know me as Wanheda." To that, all of the villagers responded with a gasp, except Semet.

"What do you want from us Wanheda?" he asked, respect itching in his voice.

"Some Skaikru are planning to attack this village. I have my man waiting on the path to here, ready to intercept. I need you to move your elders and children to safety."

"You would attack your own people?" Semet asked curiously.

"They are not my people! They stopped being my people when they decided to attack and murder innocent people!" Clarke roared, surprising herself more than anyone. Why was she feeling so strongly about this? "Listen, there are ten of them, armed with guns. You need to move your people to safety. We will stop them, but you have to make sure of your people's safety."

Semet examined her for nearly a minute and he must have seen something to convince him because he started barking orders left and right. The village came to life all of a sudden. Everyone running about, preparing for the possible attack. "Joardon and I will come with you. Do not be fooled by his youth, he's a great hunter. I am a warrior."

"Okay. I can use two archers. Let's go."

They made their way back to where Lincoln and Roan was waiting patiently. It was clear they were wary of the rogue prince. "He's with me." She said reassuringly. "Okay, Roan, where do you need archers? And where do you need me?"

Roan immediately went full tactician on them. He sent the archers to their respective trees. The plan he devised was a simple one yet it would be effective. Clarke would wait, alone for the attackers to come while Roan and Lincoln silently flanked them. Clarke would give the signal, and the would-be attackers would get disarmed, and killed, only if necessary.

It was twenty minutes of nervous waiting for Clarke. She always hated waiting, especially now, when they had no real idea as to if they were waiting on the outskirts of the right village. Much to her relief, they were.

Pike's goons were slowly making their way towards her. They hadn't seen her yet when she saw them. 'Ten, Raven was right.' When they saw Clarke they instantly drew their weapons. Oddly, even though there were ten semi-automatic guns were aimed at her, Clarke was calm, eerily calm. "My name is Clarke Griffin, daughter of Chancellor Griffin!" she yelled. Slowly making her way to the group.

"How do we know it's really you?" a woman asked, clearly in charge of the group. She looked the same age as her mother. Dark hair, dark eyes that would remind her of Monty if Monty's eyes were hateful and cold.

"Well Mrs. Green, I'm sure Monty would vouch for me. I did save his life couple of times after all." Clarke answered, hoping her gambit would pay off. In the meantime, she kept making her way to the group slowly.

"What are you doing here miss Griffin? You left the camp and no one heard from you in three months, at least that's what I've been told."

"I was kept prisoner by the _savages_." she answered, hoping she displayed enough hatred to convince her.

"You don't seem like a hostage to me. In fact, you seem more like them savages then us." She asked, still suspicious of her.

"I escaped. I don't know if you were ever a prisoner but I didn't really get to chose what to wear. I barely grabbed this sword from them." she answered. This time, Monty's mother seemed convinced. She relaxed her grip on the gun and rest of the group followed suit. Clarke kept her pace steady, her right hand ready to move on a moments notice and her left hand on the radio.

"How about getting your revenge then? We are on our way to get some ourselves" Mrs. Green asked, her hatred clear in her voice. That was all Clarke needed though, an admission.

Clarke was now close enough to engage. In one swift motion, she unsheathed her sword and viciously cut her hand clean, rotating and hitting the man to her right's nose with her sword's pommel and breaking it. To her left, she saw Roan attack viciously and cut the tendons of two men within the seconds. She saw Lincoln engage a woman in her right periphery. It was then she heard arrows flying towards the group.

It took them a couple of minutes to finish of the group. Not a single gun was fired. Luckily they managed to not kill anyone. The only person that might die was Monty's mother. Clarke immediately took off her outer fur and shirt and used her shirt to compress her handless arm. The group was all knocked out or on the verge of consciousness. "Semet, I need you to build a fire! We have to burn the limp!" she yelled. She saw Semet start the fire immediately.

"Why are you trying to save her?" he asked.

"She will be adequately punished, for that, she needs to stay alive."

"Clarke?!" she heard Bellamy yelp. In an instant, he was next to her. "Holy shit! We were just ten minutes behind them, how did you do this?"

"Bellamy, I don't have time right now. I need everyone to take care of their wounds," she said, holding out Hannah Green's arm so Semet could burn the wound shut. It was an ugly and smelly procedure but a necessary one. After they successfully tended to everyone's wounds, Clarke finally sat down. Adrenaline finally leaving her body. Bellamy and Kane were still in shock of the scene. It wasn't surprising really. If Clarke wasn't there, she would be shocked to see how quickly the matter was resolved. Two minutes. Shortest and least deadly attack in the world history.

By the time her breathing slowed down, her mind started working again. "Okay, Bell, I need you to take Roan to Arkadia. We can't let Indra see you, not yet. Lincoln, you can stay. I don't think Indra would be inclined to seek punishment for you right now." Clarke said. The men both nodded and Roan immediately took off with Bellamy. "Semet, I need you to promise me not to tell anyone of prince Roan's involvement here. It'd mean his death and I don't think you would want someone who risked his life to save your village to die because of it."

"Sha, whatever you say, Wanheda."

 

 

 

 

It took another hour for Indra to show up with nearly five dozen warriors and Octavia in tow. She seemed to be relatively at ease, or the Indra's version of being at ease, armed with her permanent scowl. After giving Clarke a barely there nod, she got on with the business, ordering her warriors around. "So, sky girl, am I to believe you handled these _natrona_ all by yourself, Kane and Lincoln?"

"Semet and… Joardon helped a lot." Clarke said, accompanied by a shrug. "I'll release them to your custody so you can punish them yourselves, but…"

"Do you think you can tell me what to do girl?!"

"Not really, no. but I think you should consider punishing them in front of my people. They need to understand the consequences of their actions."

"So we will. I sent word to Heda, she will want to join us for this." Clarke felt her heart beat go off the rail with the announcement. It was one thing to know she'd have to see the woman eventually but the sudden reality hit her harder than expected.

"O-Okay." She was speechless. "I'll be at the Arkadia, trying to mediate the situation. After the execution, I'd like to discuss a few things with you and the Commander."

"That is for Commander to decide," Indra answered, no emotion in her voice. It was still a mindfuck for Clarke how business-like grounders can be. "You are alive."

"Sorry to disappoint you. How are things in Arkadia? Octavia told me everything but I'd like your opinion as well."

"I don't involve myself with Skaikru business."

"So you are telling me you have no scouts watching Arkadia? Really?"

"I don't know about that but if there were scouts, they'd report about how there seems to be a divide between your people."

"That much, I know. What can you help me that'll help me defuse the situation?"

"The one called Mary. She's not who she seems to be."

"Noted. Thank you," she answered, with appreciation shown on her face. "We can be friends, you know."

They made their way back to the camp. There was no real change to it really. She expected to see new structures for housing and a farm or two maybe but there was none to be seen. "Kane, why does Arkadia look the same as when I left?"

"Things are… not ideal. We wanted to start on it but with the arrival of Farm station…"

They made their way through the clearing to the doors. Clarke made sure her face was as hidden as she can manage. The guards recognized Kane and opened the gates immediately. "Go to the council room, Lincoln knows where it is. I'll get your mom."

"O, can you get Bellamy and Roan please?" Octavia answered with a puff of hair and a half-hearted nod and left them.

Not surprisingly, Clarke was perfectly fine finding the council room herself, and without an interruption. Not much had changed indeed. The room still consisted of a dozen of chairs, a big table and knick-knacks one would expect to be in there. She took a seat and tried to calm herself. She knew her mother thus she knew a headache was unavoidable. Abby and Kane arrived ten minutes later which felt more like ten seconds to Clarke.

As soon as she arrived, Abby beelined to Clarke with a shriek that may have been an attempt to say her name. It was the second time that day Clarke was faced with her mortality because of a hug. "Mom, can't breath." Next twenty minutes were filled with endless questions. Much to Clarke's pleasure, Roan, Bellamy, and Octavia made it inside.

"Mom, I hate to interrupt but we have more important things to talk about."

Abby instantly went on a defensive by crossing her arms. "Like what?"

"The mutiny that has been growing under your leadership for one. A war with Trikru we barely avoided today. Or the fact that since I left three months ago, there seem to be no improvements to this camp. Where should we begin?"

"What do you mean war? Are they planning to attack?" Abby asked with a quiver of fear in her voice.

Clarke let out a breath. "No, but Pike's goons tried to attack a village today." With that Clarke and the company went on to explain what happened last two days.

Abby seemed to get madder by the minute. By the time Clarke was finished with her story, Abby was redder than ever before. "You should have come to me! You had no right to take action by yourself!"

"I had no right?! I risked my ass for you, for a chance at peace!"

"I am the chancellor! You had no right to let them take our people. If they have to be punished, it should be by us."

This wasn't a surprise really. Abby had always been like this, sure of herself and condescending. "And what punishment would you have given them? Besides, this happened right under your nose. I think it's clear this isn't working."

That managed to surprise Abby. "What is not working?"

Clarke let out a breath and calmed herself. "You being chancellor. You are condescending, self-righteous and too self-absorbed, mother. You do not respect grounders. You do not listen to the people you are supposed to lead. Besides, you are not even an elected chancellor. This couldn't be a surprise for you."

The room was eerily silent, with the exception of the mechanic hum of the compound. "I'm sorry, mom but this is the situation. Tomorrow, Indra and Commander will be here for the punishment of the guilty dozen and you cannot interfere."

The rest of the afternoon was spent arguing and some more arguing. By the time Clarke managed to escape the claustrophobic room, the sun was almost set. She made her way to the small fire pit that became a meeting ground for the delinquents with Roan. Introductions were made, stories were told and bodies were intoxicated. Clarke felt at ease by her friends' side. Every member of the original hundred was there with the exception of Monty, whose mother was still held by Trikru and Jasper, and with the addition of Roan and Lincoln.

Once sufficient amount of stories were told and sufficient amount of moonshine was drunk, Clarke started laying the groundwork for the next day. She started small, asking the necessary questions and pushing necessary buttons. Before the night was over, the hundred was already pushing Clarke to go for the chancellorship, and to Clarke's surprise, she didn't even have to utter the word.

 

 

 

 

Next morning came with chaos in its tow. As always, gossip traveled and everyone knew Clarke was back. Everyone also found out about the missing ten. The tensions were running high and Clarke had to admit, watching Pike run around all day and try to figure out what went wrong was amusing.

Clarke spent most of the morning planning with the hundred and talking to Kane and Sergeant Miller, both of whom agreed to support Clarke, though the former had his reservations about the move.

The sun was an hour away from setting when Trikru showed up, and show up they did. The sudden shouting from the guards on duty brought Clarke back from her mind. She immediately went to the gates with Roan to get a sense of the situation. Bellamy was next to her soon enough. "Commander sure travels heavy" he mocked. He was right though, Commander and Indra were leading at least a hundred warriors.

"I'm sure it's just a precaution, " she said, hoping that she was right. "Roan, what do you think?"

"This is just a show of force. If the commander intended on declaring war, she would've brought a real army."

By the time Abby and Kane made their ways to her, the small army in front of the gates was halfway done preparing camp. "Roan, let's get your banishment lifted." she made for the gate, but didn't get far.

"Where do you think you are going?" Abby asked, irritation clear in her voice.

"I'm going to meet with the commander."

Abby was clearly in the mood for a fight. "No, you won't. You've done enough. If someone has to meet with the commander, it should be me."

"You can come if you want but I'm going." with that, she made her way to the gate. "Open up!" She made her way to the grounder camp, and what was clearly the commander's tent.

Her mind was racing, just like her heart. The last time she made this trip, it ended with a massacre and a betrayal. The last time she saw her, her heart and everything she ever believed in were shattered, she was broken.

The guards outside didn't say a word to her but stopped Roan and Abby. "He's with me" was all she said and she made her way in, leaving a humiliated and frustrated mother behind.

Her heart was racing as she entered the tent, seeing Lexa changed that. Her heart either stopped completely or was beating so fast that she couldn't feel. Either way, her heart wasn't the only reaction to the face-painted commander in her all grandeur. The moment Clarke made eye contact with the commander, her breath got hitched, and she felt all the wrong emotions rise. Lexa was still the same woman, a real embodiment of composure and power. She was sitting on her throne, twirling her dagger. _That can't be a good omen,_ Clarke thought to herself.

Roan entrance to the tent brought her back to the reality. "Indra. Ryder. Commander. Welcome to Arkadia."

"Leave us." Indra made to speak but thought better of it and left with Ryder and Roan. "Thank yo, Clarke, for saving my people."

"It was the right thing to do."

"That it was. But still, you risked your life to protect them even after... what happened."

"There are some who do that, you know, risk their lives for the innocent."

"I know you are mad at me for…"

"I'm not mad. I'm disappointed. I thought you were better than that. I guess I was wrong."

"I made the decision that was best for my people, Clarke, I'm sure you of all people understand that."

"But you didn't, did you? Do you really think that was the best decision? Leaving us to die? What do you think mountain men would've done if they were successful? Do you really think they would've chosen peace after you gifted them the ability to walk freely outside of Mount Weather?"

"They are no match for us on the ground, Clarke."

"That is just wishful thinking Lexa. The first thing they would've done is to send a missile to Polis. They were never going to leave Kongeda be and you know that."

"I had a chance to save every one of my people without a loss. I had to take that chance."

"You may not have lost anybody that day, yes. How about the day after that?"

That seemed to silence the mighty commander. If Clarke had any less self-control, she would've laughed. It was amusing to see the commander of twelve clans speechless and proven wrong.

"That is not why we are here today though, commander."

"No, it isn't."

"What are you going to do to them?"

"They will die."

"A thousand cuts?"

"No, they were not able to hurt anybody, thanks to you. So I don't believe that is necessary."

"Good. I also need you to lift Roan's banishment."

Lexa was surprised, not because of the request but because of the stubbornness that was behind it. "Why do you care?"

"He brought me to you. That was the deal you offered him. Or are you planning to back out of another deal?" Clarke smirked. It was fun for her, more than anything, to push commander and see what happens.

"And I will."

A calm silence enveloped them while both women regarded each other. While Lexa noted the newfound muscles on Clarke, Clarke couldn't help but notice the well-hidden bags under the other woman's eyes. It'd not be noticeable to most but Clarke had spent too many days emerald gazing to miss it. "So, what now?" Clarke asked, unsure how else to fill the silence.

"Now we move forward."

"And how do you suppose we do that?"

"You already know Ice Queen is looking for you."

"Yeah, Roan told me. She wants to kill me." The lack of emotion in her voice even surprised Clarke. Since when she was so detached from life that she felt nothing in regards to her death?

"Or to ally with you."

"So she can use me against you?"

"Yes."

"Makes sense. And what are you doing to ensure that doesn't happen?"

"I'm talking to you." Lexa quipped though Clarke could easily see the uncertainty in her eyes.

"What else?"

"Nothing. I will not move against you or Skaikru."

"Why not?"

"Because I know you won't work with Nia. You are too smart for that." Lexa answered, her honesty shining in her eyes.

"War is coming, isn't it?"

"War has never left Clarke."

"God dammit! I hate this."

"What would you think if I offered Skaikru to become the thirteenth clan?" Lexa asked, tentatively.

Clarke couldn't help but be relieved. She thought about that a lot, becoming the thirteenth clan. It'd help Arkadia a lot, not just by ensuring the safety of the camp but also in means of trade and better assimilation to the ground.

"I thought about that too but I can't see it happening in the near future. The trust that has been barely there was broken. My people won't trust you easily. I mean we are here today for a reason after all."

Lexa stood, as if on cue and walked over to the table. "And I intend to win that trust back."

" _I_ don't trust you."

The commander couldn't help but show the hurt, but also the understanding that followed. "I intend to win your trust back as well, Clarke."

"Good. What's our next step? You know my people won't just sign on with the coalition."

"First, we deal with the guilty party."

 

 

 

The sun was beginning to set and the tensions were running high, though to be honest, tensions were always running high on the ground. By the time the posts that the guilty would be tied to were set, all of the Arkadia had some idea about what occurred the day before and what was about to happen. Pike was working vehemently, pushing people to attack and trying to gain support to push for an election. It seemed to be working, though having an army at the gates of the camp probably helped.

Lexa approached the gates where Clarke was watching Arkadia. "It's time."

Clarke answered by just a small nod and kept her gaze, ready to move. Roan was next to her, just waiting.

"Why are you still here? You are a free man now."

"I want to see how this plays out. It's not everyday one gets to see Wanheda work her magic."

"So you are here to watch the freak show?"

Roan laughed, harder than he probably should've and Clarke could just make the hints of jealousy certain brunette was showing. She filed it to the back of her mind, to be analyzed later. "Do you trust the commander?" she asked, curious to Roan's perspective.

"I don't trust anyone."

"Now I'm hurt."

Roan's answer looked very similar to a flirty shoving though, in reality, there was nothing romantic or nearly sexual between them. While they were talking, the prisoners were tied to posts and it was time for the execution to begin so Lexa moved forward until she was right in the middle of two camps, easily heard by both. She raised her hand and silence descended.

"Trikru! Skaikru! We are here this sundown for the execution of ten would-be murderers. These people think of us as savages. They think we are undeserving of the ground we bled and suffered for and they sought to take it from our dead bodies. Thanks to Wanheda, a massacre was prevented and the guilty were captured." With that, murmurs of Wanheda rose from the Trikru crowd.

Pike took this as his cue and yelled, "Are we really going to stand here and let these savages, these monstrosities kill our people?! Where is the chancellor? What are we waiting for?"

Clarke couldn't help but smile, and it was a vicious thing. "What do you suggest then?" she goated. She had already discussed this with Lexa, making sure she let it play out.

"I demand an election!" he yelled, and murmurs of support rose. There were clearly enough people to reason an election.

"I second that notion," Bellamy said, as planned. "I think we all know who should be our leader! We all know who saved our asses countless times. I say Clarke!" and with that, the delinquents started chanting Clarke's name. It wasn't long before most of the camp was chanting her name.

Abby was eyeing Clarke and Clarke felt for a second that she may just read her mind. She, too, raised her hand without a success. Clarke felt like laughing. Seeing the commander operate and command a crowd highlighted her mother's inability to command real respect. So instead of waiting, Clarke, too, joined the hand raisers and this time, the silence was back. She motioned for her mother to continue. "I don't think we need to count votes."

From Pike's face, it was clearing he knew he lost, but Clarke knew, like any mad animal, Pike, too, was most dangerous when he was cornered. Abby continued, "Is there any objections to Clarke Griffin's leadership? If so, speak now." No one did. "Then I have no choice but proudly announce my daughter as the chancellor."

It took nearly fifteen minutes for the crowd to calm down. Once they did, Lexa continued, "Shall we continue Chancellor?"

Before Clarke can answer, Pike did, "No, you may not!" and aimed her gun at Lexa. The crowd around him moved out so fast that a spectator might think he had the Spanish flu.

"Put your weapon down!" Clarke roared and managed to scare herself. This new side of her, the side that reminded her awfully like the commander, was truly frightening to her. She never felt this much anger course through her veins, it felt empowering. "Now!"

"Make me, _chancellor,_ " he mocked. Clarke wasn't sure if he thought she wouldn't but she did nonetheless. She took out her gun and fired in a fluid motion, and everyone went nuts. Grounders started moving forward, either to protect their commander from further danger or to attack. The Arkers all took several steps back. It was when people finally realized Pike was laying on the ground, with a bullet wound on his forehead that people started looking for the source.

This should've been more than enough for Clarke, and it would've been more than enough but Wanheda had tasted blood and Clarke was offline now. She took rapid steps forward and shot every one of the prisoners in rapid succession. An unnatural silence took hold. Not a breath was drawn. Even nature seemed to freeze.

"This ends now!" Clarke roared. "This ridiculous warmongering and extremist hate end now! You say grounders are savages?! They weren't the ones to try to kill innocent villagers and their children! It was Arkers!" Clarke took several calming breaths and when she started again, she was much more silent. "This ends now. Do you really want to continue fighting each other? We sacrificed countless people to come to the ground and since the moment we step foot here, we fought, burned and killed our way through. It's time we change that. I and the rest of the hundred committed two massacres to get some resemblance of peace and I. Will. Not. let anyone get in the way of that."

"You just murdered him!" a sky person cried out.

"Damn right I did. He gave the order to kill a two-year-old baby. I saw the village he sent those ten to attack. There were children there, and elderly. He gave an order that would've ended those people's lives."

"You killed a mountain full of people!" another shout out.

"Yes, and to protect what's mine, I'd kill thousands of mountains more! That mountain full of people were bleeding people to death, turning them into reapers or collecting bone marrow from them. My mother was being drilled when I pulled that lever with Bellamy and Monty. Raven still can't walk. Countless families lost their members to that godforsaken mountain. But you wouldn't know, now, would you? I didn't see any of you there."

She let silence take hold after that. Waited for an opposition to speak. None did. "Commander, if there is nothing else, I have a lot to do tonight."

 

 

 

Next week went by in a blur of meetings and public discussions. A complete restructuring of the council was necessary, so they started with that. Bellamy, as always, took on the mantle of Clarke's second in command. Kane kept his seat in the council, and so did Sinclair. Clarke also extended an offer of a seat to Sergeant Miller who declined the offer extremely politely. So Clarke gave the seat to his son instead. Miller Jr. was good with people, he was loyal and patient. Abby, even after her lengthy challenges, did not keep her position in the council.

Mary, the woman Indra warned Clarke about, also did not keep her seat. A former agricultural engineer from farm station survivors named Jake joined the council as well. He was an unassuming and goal oriented man who mostly chose to stay out of way.

They also started the planning of expansion. That wasn't really a choice though. They needed land to build houses and farms. The meetings she held with commander wasn't anything but that, meetings. They agreed on most subjects and left the rest for the meeting they decided to held with the representatives of twelve clans in two weeks time.

The week showed a lot of promise. The Arkers seemed to calm down when they realized the first hour of Clarke's leadership wouldn't be a constant. The guards started a truly tiring training regimen, under the leadership of Lincoln and Sergeant Miller, though they mostly focused on swords and arrows, which commander happily supplied. Indra also agreed to help guards traini though Clarke was fairly certain it had something to do with Octavia who was eerily cheery. They also made a trip to farm station, to salvage what can be salvaged, which provided a good variety of seeds for them to plant and a bunch of tech that would surely keep Raven occupied for a while.

Lincoln also started to teach a group how to hunt, with the help of Roan. The duo seemed to get along well, though it was mostly due to them being the only grounders in the camp. The group showed great progress and there was now a good supply of meat and fur.

Nyko arrived at the camp a couple of days after Clarke's official ascension to leadership, to teach local herbs to Abby and to learn what Abby has to offer, especially regarding the survivors of the mountain. This was an important part of the agreement Clarke reached with the Commander, and a part both were happy to oblige.

At the end of two weeks, Ark's future finally started to take shape, there was a clear plan and willingness to follow the said plan. The meeting with the coalition was coming up soon and Clarke couldn't help but get nervous. She would need to take the stage during the meeting and show the rest of the coalition what Skaikru had to offer, and that they weren't planning to cause any more trouble and she counted on Raven to do that. They were new to the ground so they didn't really have anything other than their medical and technological knowledge to offer in the means of trade.

She also sent two teams to Mount Weather to get supplies including weapons, maps, medicine and seeds. To Clarke's amusement, there were a good variety of seeds there to add their collection. She hated sending her people there, but she needed anything she could get her hands on for trade. She gifted a couple of maps to Lexa, who went ballistic. Though it was understandable, considering grounders had to rely on handmade maps up until that point.

All in all, it was a tiring but fulfilling week.


	2. So we meet again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and a group of Skaikru go to Polis for the summit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is half the length the first one was. It is also a lot less tense. Hope you enjoy it.
> 
> *: Happy feet reference.

The time for the meeting with the leaders of twelve clans was coming, too fast in Clarke's opinion, really. It was only two days away and yet she felt nowhere near prepared. This meeting was essential for Clarke's hopes for the future. If it went bad, it could mean a bloody war that Skaikru probably won't end up surviving. Though if it went well, it would be an essential milestone to real peace.

So she prepared. With the help of Octavia, Lincoln, and Roan. As always, Octavia was happy to oblige because in included attacking Clarke verbally about everything Skaikru did upon stepping foot in the planet. Lincoln was a more steady presence, though he also pushed Clarke mentally to prepare for the possible onslaught. Roan, on the other hand, supplied them with some information regarding the clan leaders and what to expect from them.

Most of the preparations though were in the form of tradables and tech. Her plan was simple: get to that meeting and bribe the shit out of it, or at least show the leaders of the known mankind what Skaikru can offer. The tech, though, was a problem. Tech stores were all closed due to, you know, armageddon and shit, and they had to use what they have to the fullest, not just because of their dependence on it. No, in Clarke's vision, technology was a perk, not an essential part of their survival.

In addition to the preparation for the meeting, Clarke also started planning for the winter. According to Lincoln, the winter in this territory lasted four months and it was only a month or so away. It meant four months of cold sky people hadn't yet felt. It also meant hunting would be a trouble, though still possible. There were already five new wooden houses and a large mess hall built but there was a lot to be done still.

"Ray, what you got?" Clarke asked before Raven even saw her, thus startling her.

"Shit! You scared me, you freaking grounder!" she exclaimed, clutching her chest. "I prepared a bag for you. Five solar-powered handheld radios. Range ten miles or so. I also threw in a couple of flashlights."

"No chance adding couple dozen more miles in there?"

"Not with the shit we've got. I can make you a hundred radios but none could reach Polis without a radio tower," Raven said.

"Well, it's better than no radios," Clarke sighed. "While I'm gone, I need you and Sinclair to stay focused on the new location and how we can move there. I hope to begin as soon as the winter ends, sooner if we can."

"Will do princess. Are you sure you can convince the commander raccoon to agree to this?"

Clarke shrugged. "We'll see. I am hopeful though."

Raven laid back in her chair to examine Clarke. It was clear her new role was taking a toll on Clarke, she looked tired. "How are the preparations for the grounder-fest? Are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, I guess," Clarke answered, though the breath she let out beforehand held more truth than the statement. "We haven't even really begun but I already hate politics."

"That's good. I'd be concerned if you didn't," Raven answered, "Jaha didn't and thanks to that, we lost half of our people."

"Sydney?"

Raven nodded. She stood up and limped over to the table with some of her favorite toys.

"You walk like one of them penguins from that animation*."

Raven glared at Clarke. "Call me Lovelace and I will kill you."

"That would be Kane."

"Holy shit, you are Bo!" Raven exclaimed. Suddenly extremely cheery.

"Oh, god no. You are going to call me Bo now, aren't you?"

Before Raven could answer, Bellamy barged into the room in a hurry. "Clarke, Indra is at the gates with a dozen of warriors. She wants to talk to you."

Before Clarke could answer, Raven jumped in, "Run Bo, welcome your visitors," she smirked.

"At least I can walk in a straight line."

The princess made her way to the gates with Bellamy. There was a small crowd already gathered. When they made their way through, Clarke saw Indra sitting on her horse, eleven warriors with her. "Lower your weapons. Indra is our ally."

The guards complied, albeit reluctantly. There was a lingering distrust still, understandably. "Open it."

The gate opened and the Trikru warriors all made their way in, with eight unoccupied horses in tow. Clarke watched Indra intently, maybe that's why it took her a while to realize the oddity. "Anya?!"

"Hei, Skai gada," Anya hailed.

"You were dead? I cut one of your braids. I… I…"

"Do you think me weak enough to fall to your weak guns, girl?"

"Apparently not. I'm glad you are, you know, alive. Where were you? I went back to burn your body but I couldn't find it, obviously."

Indra's irritation made itself known in the form of a throat cleaning.

"Oh, yeah. What are you doing here?"

It was Indra who spoke. "Heda sent us to ensure your safe arrival to the Polis. She also gifted these horses to Skaikru. The silver one is yours."

"Thank you," Clarke answered, checking the silver stallion. "And welcome to Arkadia. I assume you will be staying with us. You are welcome to stay inside the ship or you can camp within the walls."

Indra nodded and shouted her orders to the warriors in Trigedasleng, clearly choosing the latter. Clarke made her way over to Anya, to get the whole story behind her miraculous recovery but before she could ask any more questions, her mother made herself known. "Clarke, what's going on?"

"The commander sent Indra and her contingent to guide us to Polis."

Abby's irritation was clear on her face. "When will you leave?"

"Tomorrow afternoon. I hope to camp near TonDC for a quick errand."

"Okay, they can camp outside the walls."

Clarke wasn't sure whether she was surprised or not. It was very Abby to still try to order Clarke around. "Why?"

"Our people won't like it if they stay within the walls."

"They will learn," Clarke answered firmly. "Peace won't be accomplished if all we do is ignore each other mother."

"Clarke-"

"No, the decision is made." Abby huffed her displeasure and turned to leave. "Oh, and mother, you will do well to remember who is in charge. You may not like my decisions, but you will follow my orders."

Abby visibly stiffened. "Yes, your majesty."

"Princess is fine. You are my mother, after all, there is no need for extra formality." Clarke could hear hushed laughter coming from Anya. The doctor eyed Anya and turned in annoyance and marched back to medical. "I'm glad you are enjoying the show."

"Oh, this will be fun."

"Come, I'll show you around and if you behave, I may even let you take a hot shower. You stink," Clarke jabbed. She was surprised to find that Anya had a sense of humor, though her aliveness was a bigger surprise.

They made their way around the compound. Anya was vigilant, listening to Clarke explain, best to her abilities, how everything worked. Though she made a great recovery, it was clear from the way she walked that Anya wasn't the warrior who once kicked Clarke's ass and probably still could. She made a mental note to check with her mother to find out if there is anything they could do for her.

Clarke spent rest of the day making the necessary arrangements for her departure and gathering the necessary supplies. Though they decided to travel light, with the help of Raven and Monty, who avoided Clarke at any cost, they managed to outfit one of the rovers recovered from Mount Weather to a makeshift truck.

 

 

 

 

The sun was already set when Clarke was finally able to finish the preparations and gather everyone in front of the new podium. It was time for the announcements and informing those who would join her in the journey. Though everyone knew by now why the Trikru warriors were there, the gathering also presented Clarke with the opportunity to ease any worries.

"As you all know, tomorrow, a dozen of us will leave for Polis to meet with the leaders of the coalition. This will be a chance for everyone to make better impressions. Indra and her warriors joined us today to make sure our safe arrival. In my absence, Bellamy is in charge." Bellamy's shock and hurt was clear in his face. "I plan on being back in no more than a week. In the meantime, keep up the good work we have been doing. The winter is coming and it'll be a hard, new experience for all of us. Keep building, hunting, and stocking."

Clarke waited for a moment before continuing, watching the crowd's reaction. Most were okay, though they were still a bit suspicious of the Trikru present. "Is there any questions?"

It was Bellamy who answered. "Who are you going to take with you?"

"Kane will join me as the representative of our clan. Monty, Jasper, Zoe, Harper, Octavia, Lincoln, Wick and Jackson will also be joining us."

Only Lincoln, Octavia and Kane was not surprised. She could see, even without looking, the shock in Abby's face. The same shock that was present in Monty and Jasper's face. Though in their defense, Monty and Jasper have been avoiding Clarke these past few weeks, pretty successfully so.

After the announcement, everyone went their way. The dinner was near ready so that was not really surprising. Bellamy made his way over to her. "Clarke, if you think I will let you go there without me, you are delusional. Besides, Jasper? Really? Are you looking for trouble?"

"Bell, I need Kane to come with me. He needs to meet the people he will deal with. If you come with me too, who is going to run things here?"

"It won't be safe there."

"I know, that's why I need you to stay. If something happens to me and Kane... You are the only one I can trust with this," Clarke sighed. "About Jasper, it'd be a nice change for him. From what Lincoln told us, Polis sounds like a lively place. It might help Jasper out of his depression."

"And why not Raven? She's the only other person that can talk some sense into you."

"She's too valuable. You know as well as I do that she's the only reason we are all alive today. I can't risk her leaving the relative safety of the camp while the truce we have is still questionable."

"Do you think the commander will betray us again?"

"No, but until we either join the coalition or revise the truce to include all the clans, we are still at war, albeit it is a cold one. This truce does not stop other clans from attacking us and I can name a few who would love to do just that."

Bellamy's shoulders visibly sagged. "Fine but if you are not back in a week, I will march to Polis."

"No, you won't."

"Yeah, I know," Bellamy laughed. "I'm trusting you to keep O safe."

"I was trusting her to keep me safe but sure, that works as well," Clarke grinned at Octavia who puffed her chest. While she was still not over her anger, Octavia was a lot more agreeable now. She promoted herself and Lincoln as Clarke's guards. Though Clarke was sure it was Octavia's way of keeping an eye on her, it helped Octavia better understand Clarke's decision-making process, and mend the fences a bit.

She thought about taking Roan too but decided against it. Having Roan's support and friendship was unexpected but welcomed, and keeping that a secret was for the best. If the ice queen found out about Roan's stay within Arkadia, it'd create all sorts of problems for the newly free man.

Time for departure came and went, and the group started on the journey to TonDC. With Indra's persuasion, they decided to spend the night at the large, temporary camp that was set up for the survivors of the bombing and those rescued from the mountain. Clarke, Kane, Octavia and Lincoln were on the horse back while the rest followed them on the rover, newly named "the truck".

By the time they made their way to the camp, the sun was close to setting. The scenery at the camp was a hopeful one. While the survivors of the mountain all looked pale, thin and sickly, they were happy. It was understandable, being captured by the Moun-de and surviving it had been unimaginable for the grounders for over a century.

Upon their entry to the camp, all eyes found the travelers, especially thanks to the rover. The residents of the camp recognized Clarke almost immediately. Murmurs of Wanheda could be heard all around. Clarke straightened in her saddle unconsciously.

She was surprised when some of the crowd bowed to her slightly. She could see the awe in their eyes. It made her uneasy. She wasn't used to being looked at like that. Though she commanded some respect amongst sky people, this she wasn't used to, nor she was comfortable with.

Indra raised her hand to quiet the crowd. " _Wanheda and the rest of the Skaikru will be joining us in the camp tonight. They are Heda's guests, treat them well._ "

The crowd murmured their acceptance and went on their day, though Clarke could still hear the murmurs of her title. The group of warriors accompanying Indra took the reins of the horses and made their way through the crowd.

Indra left them, to get information about the on-goings of the camp, Clarke presumed. Anya led the group to a small fire and left to find them food. A long silence took hold of the group, everyone watching the people moving around, the sick and the weak being tended by healers, food being cooked, warriors training. It was Monty who broke the silence, though not in a meaningful way, "Wow."

"Wow, indeed," Kane agreed. "They, sure, are a resilient people."

Another silence took hold, this time it was Zoe who broke it, "So, princess, are you going to tell us why we left the camp a day early and came here or do you want us to keep guessing?"

Harper continued her train of thought. "Yeah, I mean I'm not complaining but what's the real reason we are here."

Clarke sighed. She mulled over how to explain her reasoning. After a short while, she decided to just say it. "We are here to hunt down a pauna." She eyed the group for reactions. While the sky people looked at her blankly, Lincoln and Octavia was in shock.

"Dammit sky girl!" Anya exclaimed from the other side of the fire, accompanied by a couple of wide-eyed children who were carrying food, "why are you insisting on tempting death?"

"You seemed to forget, I command death," Clarke quipped.

Monty shifted where he sat. "Can someone explain what is a pauna?"

Lincoln was fast to supply him the answer, "It's a giant gorilla. It's…"

"A death sentence," Anya completed for Lincoln, "and if you think you can kill it, you are stupider than I thought."

Clarke smiled a wicked smile, "I have a plan."

The rest of the night was filled with questions about the pauna. After a while, some of the residents of the camp joined them with stories about their near encounters with the beast and small supply of alcohol. It turned out to be a nice evening, filled with laughter and horror stories. Nyko was among the group as well.

The night was also filled with endless attempts at changing Clarke's mind. To her surprise, even Indra was among the group that tried. It was Anya that surprised her the most. She was vehemently against it. Clarke was sure that if she wasn't careful, she would be put to sleep and carried to Polis.

 

 

 

 

In the break of dawn, Clarke left the camp in silence with Octavia and Lincoln, after telling Kane to stay on the radio. They slowly made their way to the former zoo the pauna still used as a nest. It didn't take them long to find the first signs of the monstrosity. When they got close enough, Clarke ordered the duo to climb the trees and wait. They were to get involved only if it's absolutely necessary. She took out her dart gun, now armed with concentrated sleeping darts, one of which could easily put a bear to sleep. She placed the spears she brought at the root of a nearby tree. It was risky for her to actively seek out the pauna but the hunt felt right.

Clarke was a hunter after all and she felt at ease in the woods. She missed the solitude she had during her three months long vacation, and this, this she loved.

A loud roar interrupted her train of thought, followed by what could only be described as a number small earthquakes. After couple minutes of nervous waiting, the pauna finally showed itself, glaring at Clarke. Clarke's heart beat slowed down a bit, before the fastening to a pace that could fool even her mother into thinking there wasn't any. She wasn't sure, but Clarke could swear the beast recognized her. After a short stare-off between the two, the beast lunged forward.

Clarke immediately emptied the clip on her dart gun to the beast's head. The animal showed no sign of sleeping, though its movements became a little disoriented and slow. When the animal finally made to jump on Clarke, she dived to her left and drew her sword, waiting for the beast to make its next move, and move it did. After an deafening roar, the animal lunged forward once again. This time Clarke dived to her right and sliced the animal's left leg. The slice didn't do much.

She could hear Octavia's yells and Lincoln's efforts to keep her where she is. She felt sorry for a second, putting Octavia in this position, potentially watching Clarke die. She cleared her mind once again and followed the same strategy of diving and slashing for the next ten minutes. The animal was getting slower by the minute, due to either sleeping darts or the blood loss, though Clarke's money was on the darts.

When the animal attacked next time, she dove towards the spears, slicing her upper left arm with of them in the process. She took one of the spears and with the next attack of the beast, she lunged forward also, aiming the spear to the beast's neck to use the beast's momentum against it. The spear hit the animal's head right under the chin, though the animal still managed to backhand Clarke to a tree.

Clarke's vision went dark, though she heard the beast fall to the ground with a loud bang. She also heard the yells of her companions. She blinked, regaining her vision slowly. Then suddenly, the pain made itself known to her. She could guess by the location of the pain that she broke, or at least fractured a rib, possibly multiple. She wheezed out a breath, "I'm okay." She made to get up, falling back down on her ass immediately, "correction, I will be okay."

She saw Octavia running towards her in a fury. "Are you floating crazy?! You could've been killed! Hell, I'm surprised you are not." She immediately kneeled next to Clarke, checking the damage.

"Calm down, O. I'm okay. Just a cut on my arm and a couple of fractured ribs at most. Can you radio Kane and tell him to bring as many muscles as he can? And the rover," Clarke asked, grimacing from the pain. "And as many painkillers as he can."

"I'll have him bring Nyko and Jackson as well."

"I can't stop you even if I tried," Clarke laughed, followed by another grimace immediately.

While Octavia radioed the group, Lincoln took out his supplies and started cleaning Clarke's arm immediately.

It took the rest of the group nearly an hour to find them. The sun was at the peak, warming up the cold air. Jackson and Nyko came to her side immediately, checking her up. Nyko gave her some antibiotic tea he had prepared before coming.

"You are okay. Two fractured ribs and a cut," Jackson said. He gave her some painkillers before helping her out of her shirt and wrapping her torso and making sure it didn't restrict her breathing, while Nyko put a greenish salve on the cut on her arm and bandaged it.

"Bell is going to kill me," Octavia complained.

"I think Abby will call dibs," Kane said, unable to hide his grin.

Anya jumped in. "I sure won't live long enough to see. Heda will cut me to pieces."

"Why would she?" Monty asked, seeming genuinely puzzled.

"Anya and I were supposed to make sure you get to Polis without harm. This isn't what without harm looks like," Indra said. There was a change in the way she looked at Clarke, a bit less disdain, a bit more respect.

" _Heda_ ," Clarke sneered, "will get over it." She moved to get up, successfully this time, though a bit slow. "Besides, it's not like you could stop me and she knows it."

She walked towards her fallen foe slowly. Kneeling in front of the beast, " _Yu gonplei ste odon,_ " she whispered. "Now is the hard part. We need to figure out how to put this… this mountain of a beast to the truck."

"So this is why you had us bring the rover," Monty said, a lightbulb lighting in his head immediately. "The rover has a towing mechanism. We can use that!" he said excitedly.

It took them another hour for the group to load up the cargo and continue on the journey to Polis. Anya explained to her that as guests of honor it'd be best they enter the city at sundown. It'd add a dramatic flair to get there as close to the feast as reasonable. So, instead of riding fast and straight to the city, they rode slow and even separated to hunt whatever animal they come across. Clarke didn't get back on her horse until they got close to the city. With her injuries, riding a horse would be extremely painful, even with the pain medication.

As planned, the sun was about to set when the city walls appeared and appear they did. The walls stood at least fifteen meters high and it looked endless in both directions. The wall itself was a mixture of metal and wood, though the gate was all metal. Seeing the walls, Clarke couldn't help but get excited to see the city itself. If the city walls were this magnificent, she was curious as to what the city had to offer in the beauty department.

The gate opened up as they got closer, a small group of warriors standing guard. Indra closed in on Clarke. "Only you and two of your choosing can carry weapons other than knives inside the walls."

Clarke nodded. She had already discussed this with the group and decided Octavia and Lincoln would be the other two. She also instructed the group to empty their weapons beforehand. A gun, they could afford to lose but a loaded gun, she'd never leave in the hands of inexperienced grounders.

After disarming, the group went through the gates to find a crowd waiting for them. At the front of the crowd, the commander stood, regal and commanding. Clarke straightened up in her saddle, rather painfully and made eye contact and gave her a nod, to which she answered the same way. Clarke took in the view next. The city was absolutely beautiful. Buildings spread out in every direction, some two story, some three story.

When she finally neared the commander, she hopped off her horse and gave the reins to a warrior nearby. It was the commander who spoke first, "Wanheda, Skaikru, welcome to Polis." Though she didn't shout or anything, her voice carried to everyone.

"Thank you, Heda. It is truly beautiful," Clarke answered in a kind voice. "You were right," she added in a whisper to which Lexa answered with a small, two-second smile. "I ran into a friend of ours on the way. I thought maybe you'd enjoy seeing her again," Clarke continued with a raised voice and a wicked grin, signaling Monty to unleash the beast to the ground via the now modified contraption. Monty did.

It took the crowd a few minutes to understand what was going on. They were too awed by the mechanism to really focus on the pauna. Once they did, a cheer erupted, followed by shouts of Wanheda and pauna.

"We also brought some meat for the feast as well, and Monty's famous moonshine." She continued, though only the commander heard her.

"The pauna? Really Clarke?" Lexa asked, raising an eyebrow to show her proud disbelief.

"First impressions are important Heda. Look around. The crowd loved it."

"How did you capture it?"

"To learn that secret, you need to put a glass of wine in my hand first," she quipped, not realizing how flirtatious it sounded.

Lexa answered only by cocking an eyebrow. "Come, let me show you where will you stay."

Clarke looked back at her companions, only Kane, Octavia and Lincoln were nearby. Before she could say anything, Lexa continued. "Rest of your people will be escorted there."

 

 

 

They slowly made their way into the city. It seemed more beautiful than what she had seen in old world movies. Houses that barely survived the old world, fixed with wood and metal, looking somewhat beautifully morbid but more alive than she would've ever thought. Vendors selling food, clothing, weapons and all kinds of knick-knacks, though most were slowly closing shop. It was a sensory overload. The smells, the sounds, the colors. Everything was alive.

Because she was so focused on the city surrounding her, Clarke didn't realize the commander watching her reactions with the corner of her eye, with an amused and know-it-all smirk. They walked the city in mostly silence, Clarke absorbing all the city had to offer and the commander absorbing her.

When they finally stopped, it was in front of a three-story building that was simply beautiful. Six pillars stood out of a set of stairs to hold the roof and the building itself looked to be made out of bricks. The building had a small tower on top of it with a giant cauldron that held blazing flames.

"This is the heart of the coalition. It is where my throne room is, where we hold council meetings and public audiences. It's called _Tombomgeda_ "

"Heart of coalition?" Clarke asked, a little unsure.

"Sha," Lexa smiled, "Come, let me show you where you will be staying."

It took them barely two minutes to stop once more, this time in front of a wide-spread three story building with four columns. It was made out of bricks, same as the Tombomgeda, but it is bigger and unassuming compared to the other. It looked more like two separate buildings joined by a third two story structure. The ride side of the building stood wide while the left side was a lot more compact. The entrance to the middle structure was held on four pillars.

The second floor of the left structure, which's Lexa's home apparently, was reserved for the Skaikru. According to the commander, the right structure was where the representatives and visiting leaders of the coalition stayed. Clarke was relieved to be staying in a relative safety from the rest of the clans.

The floor they were staying was decorated simply and efficiently. There were two hallways separated by a large room that could be outfitted for every use but was decorated as a common room with comfy looking sofas. Each of the hallways had five large bedrooms.

After escorting Clarke to her room, the commander excused herself with the promise to send for her for the feast in two candle marks.

Clarke's room was decorated with same pragmatic mentality. A large comfortable bed, a table with couple stools, a wardrobe. The only item in the room that could be considered a luxury was the ceramic tub that Clarke couldn't wait to jump in. So, after a quick inspection of the room, she instantly went in search for someone to help her fill the tub.

She didn't have to search for long. Within seconds of opening the door, she was greeted by a servant who was far too happy, for Clarke's comfort, to help her. She disappeared and came back with two large warriors carrying large cauldrons of steaming water.

She undressed as fast as her pained body allowed her. She slowly descended into the hot water, feeling her muscles relax almost immediately. This would be the most amazing feeling in the world to her, if not for the throbbing pain in her chest.

After spending an unholy amount of time in the tub relaxing and washing, she left to get prepared. She wrapped herself with an unnaturally soft towel that she would believe made out of clouds, if not for, you know, science. A knock on the door forced her out of her mind. "Come in."

Octavia entered the room, looking more relaxed than Clarke had ever seen her, her hair still moist from a bath of her own. "I see you discovered the joy that is a bathtub as well," she said, a smile adorning her mouth.

"Yeah," Clarke said, pouting comically.

"What's wrong?"

"I just realized I will have to leave the bathtub behind in a couple of days."

Octavia couldn't help but burst a laughter. "I know, right? I would be lying if I said I didn't think about trading Lincoln for one of those beauties."

"Speaking of, can you ask Lincoln for some salve and wrappings?"

"Way ahead of you."

After tending to her wounds, Octavia forced her on a stool and started braiding her hair. "You know I can braid my own hair, right?"

"Who are you fooling princess?" Octavia said, "your braids are always sloppy. We can't have you looking all sloppy. You need to make a good first impression."

Clarke hummed her unwilling agreement.

"Speaking of which, how are you feeling? Are you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be, I guess," Clarke said with a sigh. "I've never had to posture in front of a crowd."

"Yeah, like killing Pike was anything but that."

"That was a calculated action. You know as well as I do the amount of shitstorm we would be in if he pulled that trigger," Clarke said, her voice growing a bit cold.

"I know, I know. But still, you got this princess. Just go out there with a charming smile and 'I'll kill you if you don't behave' look and you will be fine," she said, continuing with a giggle after a short contemplation, "you can smile, can't you?"

Clarke barked laughter at that, followed by a wince that reminded her of her painful injuries. "I certainly hope so."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have any suggestions, please share. Though I already planned the most of the story, I'd love to hear your ideas on how to make it better.


	3. Winter Celebration

Alexandra kom Trikru has always been considered cool-headed. She does not get nervous. She does not fret. So why is it that, in this moment, she finds herself in need of twirling her dagger to calm her frantically beating heart? 

She knew why. It wasn’t because there was a crowd of thousands that were waiting for their Heda to start the night of feast and entertainment, a night the people of Polis looked forward to. It wasn’t because she would have to share this night with someone who she was fighting a shadow war with. It was because this was a special night for her. This was the night, she hoped, would show a certain blonde how people of the coalition really lived. This was the first night ever she would spend in the presence of Wanheda without an unavoidable bloodshed in the horizon. This was the night, she hoped, would show Skai Praisa what grounders do best, second only to their blades. 

So she raised from her seat, one hand in the air. The crowd silenced immediately, waiting for her to speak. “Tonight, we welcome back the leaders of the twelve clans and their people to our humble capital.”

“Tonight, we welcome, for the first time, the leaders of Skaikru, destroyers of the mountain and Clarke kom Skaikru, legendary Wanheda!” She watched as all eyes left her to observe Clarke, who was seated next to her. 

“A cold winter awaits us, so we gather, once again, to celebrate a year well lived, and a new year without the looming danger of a damned mountain.” She raised her mug of ale, “Enjoy yourselves, for you are among friends!”

Roars of “hear, hear” rose from the crowd and feast started. Lexa tried to concentrate on her food, but she couldn’t keep her eyes from drifting towards the sun-haired princess. Clarke seemed to enjoy herself, deep in a conversation with Octavia and enjoying her food in-between small and admiring glances towards the city and the crowd. 

“How do you find the city so far Clarke?”

She felt Octavia’s half challenging, half respecting gaze on her, but ignored it.

“It is truly magnificent,” Clarke answered, “you must be proud.” 

“It is not my doing. Polis has seen many commanders,” Lexa said. “But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t.” 

“So you do know how to act humble,” Clarke said with a smirk plastered all over her face. 

“I am the most humble person in the entire Kongeda,” Lexa said, enjoying the small banter however unexpected it is. “Wait, that didn’t sound right.”

She enjoyed the small laugh coming from Clarke.

“Who are you and what have you done to the Commander?”

It took Lexa by surprise. Not because the question itself was confusing, the joke clear in Clarke’s voice. “Whatever do you mean?” 

“The commander I know is not exactly the one to make jokes.”

“I was gearing up for a war when we first met Clarke. Forgive me for taking war seriously.”

Clarke pondered for a little while. Lexa was right. Up until this feast, whenever the two leaders were together, there was war or a threat of a war looming over their heads. “Yeah, that makes sense. I think this is the first time I’ve seen a grounder other than Lincoln smile.”

“Oh, we smile alright. We know how to party as well,” Luna joined in from the other side of Lexa.

“I can see,” Clarke said, her admiring voice agreeing with what she said.

“You haven’t seen anything yet skygirl. Wait until the children are sent to bed,” Luna said, wiggling her eyebrows.

It took several moments for the meaning to sink in for Clarke who immediately choked on her drink. “I think I might skip that part,” she said in-between coughs. 

“Why? I’m sure we can find someone who is courageous enough to bed Wanheda.”

It was Lexa’s turn to choke on her drink accompanied by a glare sent in Luna’s direction. Clarke, on the other hand, turned a little pink. “No, thank you. I’m not the best when it comes to the affairs of the heart.”

Octavia chose this moment to join in the conversation, “now, that is an understatement,” earning a glare from Clarke immediately. “Don’t give me that look. After being Indra’s second, however brief it was, you don’t scare me.” 

Indra, who was seated next to Luna hummed in agreement. 

Luna continued on with her untimely manner, “it feels like there is a story there.”

Clarke deflected easily, “There is a story alright, but unfortunately for you, I am not nearly drunk enough to tell.” 

“We can change that.”

“Maybe another time,” Clarke rejected kindly. 

With everyone filling their stomach, the sounds of chatter rose even more, soon followed by the sounds of drums. Slowly, the tables set up for the feast cleared and instead, crowd started drinking, dancing and fighting. Lexa continued on dividing her time between watching the crowd and stealing glances to Clarke. It was good thing damn Ice Queen was seated far from her. From the expression on Luna’s face, the commander wasn’t really successful in keeping her desires a secret.

The night was well on its way and dancing was turning semi-erotic when Clarke rose from her seat. “I should check on my people. Make sure they are enjoying themselves,” she said in a way of explanation. “Besides, if I don’t let Octavia see Lincoln soon, she may cut me down.”

“Will you join us again tonight?” Lexa asked.

“I hope to. I’d like to meet some of the clan leaders while they are in a good mood.”

“Good.” Lexa watched Clarke and Octavia get lost in the crowd. It was somewhat amusing to her. When it came to a feast, no one cared if Wanheda was trying to pass through. Most didn’t even realize her presence, probably due to her small frame and newly adopted fashion choices. 

She was brought out of her musings by Luna clearing her throat. “For a commander of death, she sure seems soft.”

“I wouldn’t advise underestimating her Luna. She’s fierce when she wants to be.”

“I’m sure that’s true. The commander of death. Is it true she murdered eleven of her own people recently?”

“Where did you hear that?” Lexa asked, though not really surprised the word got around.

“Word travels fast. Even faster when it’s about Wanheda.”

Lexa mulled over for a bit. “It is true. Ten of those were on their way to attack a small Trikru village. Clarke protected the village. The remaining one was the one who gave the order to attack and he threatened me with a weapon.”

“And instead of talking them down, she killed them? Her own people?” Luna continued.

“Yes. Not everything can be solved by a sweet tongue. If talking could solve it, Clarke would choose that path.”

“Are you sure about that?” Luna asked, her skepticism clear in her voice. 

“I am,” Lexa answered, “she wants peace, same as you, same as me.”

“I hope so, but you have to excuse my doubtfulness. After all, she is soaked in the blood of more than half a thousand.”

Lexa sighed, for she knew the some of the responsibility for those deaths lay upon her. “I know. But I urge you to not make judgment hastily.”

 

 

  
It took Clarke more than she thought to find the rest of her people, with Octavia in tow. They were mostly enjoying themselves. Kane and Jackson fast to make friends among grounders and talking their ears off. Harper and Monroe accompanying Monty in a drinking game with Jasper standing off to the side and eyeing everyone suspiciously. Wick and Lincoln were sitting aside, watching over everyone. It surprised Clarke to see that Wick actually listened to her for once and didn’t drink. Though they were relatively safe within the walls of Polis, having him and Lincoln clear-minded and alert to watch over the children was important.

The women made their way to the observers, Octavia joining Lincoln immediately and becoming one with him in their own, special way. “How is it going?” Clarke asked, “any trouble so far?”

“No, the grounders are mostly ignoring us,” it was Wick who answered. “This is insane. When they said feast, they clearly meant it.” 

Clarke snorted, “From what I could gather, this is nothing yet.” 

This peaked all of the group’s attention. It was Monroe who dared ask, “What do you mean?”

“I mean if any of you is single and looking for a little fun, you might really enjoy the rest of the night,” she said with a wiggle to her eyebrows. 

Octavia snorted in agreement. “None for me, thank you very much. I have all the grounder I need right here.” Lincoln answered with a nod that practically said ‘you are god-damn right’. 

“So, what do you think, Wick? Ready for a rebound?” Clarke asked.

He seemed to light up a little, though still unsure. He left the question unanswered.

The night went on uneventful, mostly thanks to Jasper’s self-isolation which ended as soon as a couple of local teenagers joined Monty’s game. Clearly looking for a fight, Jasper joined in. The game was one derived from truth or dare. When it was your turn, you were asked a question by each of the other players. You either answered honestly to a question or you downed a drink. If you answer all of the questions, the rest of the group had to take a shot each.

It was a grounder named Josi’s turn to answer and Jasper’s turn to ask a question. Jasper smirked, finally finding himself an opportunity to escalate. “Do you like being led by a treacherous commander?” he asked, stupidly, and all hell broke loose. The two young grounders, young but ready to kill in the name of their commander stood abruptly. “You dare disrespect Heda!” Josi roared, ready to pound. 

Clarke made her way between the opposing parties immediately. “Enough!” she yelled without much success. 

The ruckus started to draw the attention of the public, which was no good of course. The two grounders tried to move towards Jasper, blocked by Lincoln and Clarke. 

Jasper continued on with his obnoxiousness, “What? Truth hurt your feelings?” he said with a smirk plastered all over his face.

“Jasper, shut up before you get yourself killed or worse,” Octavia warned.

The next time Jasper tried to open his mouth Clarke didn’t let him. She acted fast, kicking his legs from under him and dropping him to the ground immediately. She kneeled down to his level and gave a solid punch, knocking him out immediately. 

Though the painkillers Jackson supplied her was effective, the physical exertion brought some pain with it. ‘Nothing Wanheda can’t handle’, Clarke thought to herself.

Kane and Jackson made their way to her in a haste. “Take him back to his room. Make sure he doesn’t leave,” Clarke ordered Kane. “Jackson, make sure he’ll live.” Kane and Jackson both gave a nod and proceeded to carry Jasper. She waited until they were long gone. “Josi, is it?” The man/boy answered with a nod. “I am sorry for my friend’s behavior. He will be adequately reprimanded.”

“We don’t take kindly to disrespect to our Heda. He should lose his head!” he said, a little over dramatically for Clarke’s taste. 

“No, he will be punished, not killed. He’s just a stupid boy in pain. He will learn his mistake,” Clarke answered, staring him down to submission until he gave a stiff nod. “Good. Let’s not let his stupidity spoil such a fine feast.”

Clarke turned her attention to the group, “I think you guys should call it a night,” she said.

Harper answered, it was clear in her voice how much she was annoyed, “Oh man! We were just starting to have fun.” 

“Besides, I can’t leave you alone out here,” Octavia supplemented. 

“You and Lincoln can stay by my side,” Clarke assured her friend, “Wick, can you tell Kane that I want him to join me?” Once she was assured he would, she continued, “You are in charge until I get back. Make sure everyone is safe and no one leaves their room.” with that, she turned around and made her way to her seat next to the commander.

 

 

Lexa kept to herself most of the night, rarely joining the many conversations around the table reserved for clan leaders and representatives. The night went on almost perfect so far, no incidents other than a couple of fights which was to be expected. She spotted Clarke making over to the table, accompanied by Lincoln and Octavia, and peaked up. The chancellor looked clearly upset. 

“Is everything alright Clarke?” she asked, once Clarke finally sat down next to her. Octavia and Lincoln stood behind Clarke, at a respectable distance.

“One of my guys caused a scene,” Clarke answered. It was clearly an understatement, Lexa could tell, but she let it go nevertheless. 

“I am sure we can sort it out tomorrow,” she said. Clarke answered with a nod. Lexa watched as Clarke poured herself some wine and gulped it down immediately. 

Before she could say anything else, Gilla, the leader of Shallow Valley clan sat next to Clarke. “Wanheda, finally we meet,” she said, her face not conveying her thoughts.

“And you are?” Clarke asked, reserved but not rude. 

“My apologies, I am Gilla kom Louwoda. Chief of Shallow Valley clan.”

“Nice to meet you, Chief kom Louwoda. Please call me Clarke,” Clarke said with a small smile.

Lexa watched as Gilla carefully examined Clarke. This was an important moment. Gilla was a good leader, and she held enough sway in the Council of clans to be a great help in ensuring peace with sky people or she could be a great obstacle.

After a few seconds, Gilla grinned, “You can call me Gilla, Clarke,” she said, then turned to Lexa, “Heda, are you sure this is Wanheda, she’s far too beautiful to be a servant of death.” 

Lexa was about to answer when Clarke beat her to it. “But appearances can be deceiving, as I’m sure you know.”

Gilla answered with a laugh, and an agreeing “indeed,” while Lexa was more than a little surprised. She wasn't surprised by Clarke’s prowess in making good first impressions so far. No, Clarke was smart indeed. She was surprised with how easily Clarke accepted her new title. 

“Yes, the pauna we enjoyed tonight is a clear indicator. How did you manage such a feat?”

This piqued interest from couple other people scattered across the table as well, including Luna. 

“It was not that hard, really. All it took was a couple of broken ribs,” she said jokingly. “I would explain it in all its gory detail but I wouldn’t want to give away my secrets.”

This earned a small laugh from Gilla and a huff of annoyance from Indra. “Are you still mad because I left without telling you, Indra?”

Lexa answered in Indra’s stead, “I think she’s mad she didn’t partake in the hunt.” 

“I would’ve invited you but I was afraid you wouldn’t let me,” Clarke said, eyes boring into Indra.

Indra kept her silence, though if twitch of her lips were any indicator, a little amused. Lexa didn’t. “From what I know of you Clarke, no one lets you do anything.” 

“Have you seen Indra’s glare? I’d rather face ten pauna then be subjected to that horror.”

This earned her a honest-to-god laugh from Indra, followed by silence across the desk. Clarke wanted to scream ‘it’s alive’ but thought a Frankenstein reference might not be a good idea. Instead, she focused on everyone else’s reactions. Lexa was just shocked. Luna, somewhere between amused and spooked. 

“In- Indra laughs?” Luna asked, flabbergasted. 

Indra’s softened-for-the-first-time features turned hard once again. She opened her mouth to speak but before she could, Kane joined the table. “Clarke, you sent for me?”

It took several seconds for Clarke to get out of her trance. “Kane, come, sit. I want to introduce you to Luna, leader of Boat Clan, and Gilla, leader of Shallow Valley Clan,” she said, indicating the respective women. “This is Kane, the official representative of Sky People and the man in charge of trading.”

Kane put forth her arm to Luna, who answered in kind. “It is an honor to meet you both,” he said, doing the same Gilla’s arm. 

“Kane will lead interclan relationships in my stead when I’m not available. I am sure you will want to talk to him after tomorrow’s meeting,” Clarke went on to explain. “We are blessed with a lot of variety of goods to trade, including tech, medicine, and seeds I think may hard to come by.”

While Luna seemed interested, Gilla certainly wasn’t. “Seeds might be useful but we don’t need your tech, Clarke,” she said, though not rude, sounding irate.

Clarke was about to speak but Kane beat her to it, “I am sure you don’t need tech, but I am also sure you will find some of it useful. Radios, for example. Don’t you think it would be helpful if Heda, for example, could reach TonDC in a matter of seconds?”

This seemed to sway Gilla’s mind a bit but she stayed skeptical. 

Kane took out a radio from his pocket. Clarke was surprised to see he brought one and infinitely glad she chose Kane for the job. 

“Rest of our people are in our quarters right now. I can hail them for as a demonstration,” Kane said, looking at Clarke for the go ahead. Clarke gave a nod in agreement. This was an excellent idea on Kane’s part. Clarke was planning on a demonstration at the next day’s meeting but this was a great opportunity to earn some friendlies beforehand. “Wick, come in.” 

All that was heard was static for a while and Clarke felt her stomach clench a bit. Until Wick answered, that is. “Hey, boss!” Wick said.

“How is everything over there?”

“All is well. Jasper woke up shortly, grunted a little, then went back to sleep. Clarke knocked him out pretty good,” Wick said with a mocking tone. 

“Alright, stay safe.” 

For several seconds everyone kept their silence. It was unnerving really. Only Lexa and Indra was not amazed by the demonstration, seeing radios in action before. Clarke couldn’t let the silence go for very long, “We brought five radios with us, as a gift to Commander to show our gratitude for including us in this amazing feast.” She turned to Luna, “Luna, n the old world, radios were the lifelines of docks. They used it to keep track of the ships coming and going, preventing chaos by organizing comings and goings of boats. If you can find the necessary components, I’m sure our tech experts will be happy to build some for you.”

Luna perked up, “Mochof Clarke, I believe we can find some.”

“But unfortunately, they have limited range. These radios can reach half way to TonDC. We can build radio towers that would help increase the range to tenfold and if we were to build more of them, a radio could reach across all of the Kongeda.” 

Gilla finally relented and showed her genuine interest in the radio. “And you can make… radios as much as you want to?”

“Not exactly. We have a limited tech. But I am sure we will find a way to ensure you get some with a trade.”

Gilla answered with a nod.

“Kane, did you bring a flashlight?” Clarke asked, her hope in a good meeting the next day increasing by the second.

Kane took out a flashlight immediately and turned it on.

“This is called a flashlight. Easy to build really. We can outfit a similar version of this called lamp as well. A lamp is a stationary version of this. They are used to light up a room without a need for fire, thus eliminating unnecessary smoke and also preventing accidental fires,” Clarke explained.

The group continued discussing tech and other tradeable goods for a while before subject moving to the meeting and what to expect. Clarke let Kane lead the conversation on sky people’s behalf. He was good at it too. He was always a smart man, Clarke knew this from their days up in the sky. Now, however, he was also a humble man. Which was a good addition, a good side effect of their days on the ground.

For the most part, the conversation on the table kept Clarke’s focus, so it took a while for her the realize highly heated environment all around her. When she did, she couldn’t help but turn rose pink, which made Lexa smirk knowingly. She cleared her throat, “I think it is past my bedtime. If you’ll all excuse me, I’d like to return to my room.”

It didn’t take long for Luna to catch on so she smirked in a much familiar way to Lexa’s smirk, “Are you sure you want to miss all the fun, Clarke?”

“I heard Indra laugh, it’s fair to say this night was fun enough. Thank you for a fine conversation, and good night.”

“I’ll accompany you,” Lexa said, a little shyly for the commander which added to Luna’s already wide smirk.

 

 

 

They walked in a comfortable silence for a while, all around them people having wild, wild fun which made Clarke use bleach on her eyes. Once they were finally in a more secluded part of the city, Clarke broke the silence. “Luna wasn’t kidding when she implied how wild your feasts get.”

“No, she was not. My people see a lot of death. That makes them want to celebrate life even more.”

“We are a little prudish people compared to your people. An obsession we inherited from the old world, I believe.”

Lexa didn’t comment, instead, changed the direction of the conversation. “I told you Polis would change your mind.” 

“It did, more so than I thought was possible at the time.”

Lexa puffed her chest in a proud way. She always enjoyed compliments about Polis. She brought the topic to a more serious level, wanting to, scratch that, needing to open up to Clarke. “You continue to surprise me, Clarke.”

“Why?”

“First you risk your life to protect my people. Then you want another alliance,” Lexa said, “I didn’t expect you to be this forgiving.”

Clarke sighed, knowing damn well this subject would come up, not for the last time. “I may not like the decision you made at the mountain, but I understand the reason behind it and I can respect that. You did what you thought was right.”

“I did. If there was-”

“No, no ifs. What happened happened. Let’s leave it at that. There is no use discussing could haves and would haves.”

It killed a small part of Lexa’s heart, understanding what Clarke meant by that. “I meant what I said. I care, Clarke.”

It took Clarke by surprise, she didn’t expect it. She didn’t expect Lexa to be so… vulnerable. “Lexa, I…” she was shooting blanks, her mind all over the place. “I’m not like you.”

“I am not heartless Clarke,” Lexa said, sounding smaller even.

“I know that,” Clarke sighed. “What I meant is, I’m not like you. I can’t separate my heart and my duty. You’ve seen how much I risked even for Finn, a boy I kinda liked. I should’ve turned him over the moment you guys showed up at our door. But I failed to do what was best for my people then.” She shook her head clean of her doubts. “I failed to see the possibility of you making a deal with the mountain and it almost cost me all of my friends and my mother. I can’t do that again. Especially now that I actually am the leader of my people.”

“I understand.”

They continued walking in silence for a while but long before Clarke broke the silence again. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you about the survivors of the mountain and TonDC.”

“What about them?”

Clarke contemplated about how to say what she wanted to say. “What are you going to do with them? During the winter I mean.”

Lexa sighed deeply. This was a problematic issue for her. The survivors of the mountain were still weak and sending them to their respective clans was not a possibility. Most of them barely made it to the camp in the first place. “We will bring them to Polis. The problem with that is Polis doesn’t have enough space or healers to take care of them all.”

“Arkadia can take some of the load,” Clarke said, sounding unsure of herself.

Lexa was speechless, to say the least. 

“We have enough space and we are constantly building. You can send some survivors of TonDC with them. It would be helpful to everyone. Survivors of TonDC can teach us what they can about living on the ground and we could help those rescued from mountain heal and adjust. It would also force both of our people to spend time with each other, realize that neither are really monsters.” 

“Clarke… It’s not that simple. For a decision of this magnitude, I’d need the approval of the rest of the clan leaders,” Lexa said.

“I know. It’s just an idea,” Clarke said, resigned. 

“I will consider it.”

“I also wanted to talk to you about the possibility of relocation.”

“Relocation of what?”

“Of our camp. The ground we live on right now is not fertile. And it is not nearly big enough to be reasonable in the long run. Right now, we are mostly living in a singular construction which is not really good for privacy. I want to build a new camp. I already picked a spot that would be just perfect.” She was hopeful about this. The spot she picked was reasonable in all senses. It was far from any grounder villages so that natural and food resources would not be depleted. 

“Where do you want to move to?” Lexa asked.

“There is a valley between two mountain ranges two hours west of Arkadia.”

Lexa pondered for a moment which felt a little under an hour to Clarke. “I will consider it,” was all she offered in the end.

They reached their destination, at last, making their way up the stairs. When they finally made it to Clarke’s floor and turned around the corner to the hallway, silently, they came across Octavia and Lincoln in the middle of a heated makeup session. 

Clarke grinned evilly for a second before schooling her features to a mad state. “What the hell O?! I thought you had my back!”

Lexa was surprised by Clarke’s reaction and opted to stay silent for the time being. Octavia and Lincoln were shocked, to say the least. Octavia tried to speak, emphasis on ‘try’. “Clarke! I… I…”

“Cut it out! I almost died out there! That bitch of a queen tried to have me assassinated! Luna is dead! And here you are making out?!”

“What?! Clarke, I’m so sorry,” Octavia fumbled and continued on incoherently. Clarke fought to keep from laughing.

“Go find Kane. He was by the table the last I saw. Make sure he’s okay,” she said in as coldly as she could, barely holding it together. “Go, both of you.”

They ran out as if a pauna was chasing them.

“That was not very nice,” Lexa said.

Clarke, though, didn’t even hear her. She was too busy laughing ass off to which Lexa joined soon. After couple minutes of eye-watering laughter, they calmed down. “That was so fun.” 

“Indeed it was, but now I fear your fate. To die so young,” Lexa said.

“I know but it was so worth it.”

With the aftereffects of laughter subsiding, they stood there, silently. Clarke was about to open her mouth when Monty came out of his room in a disheveled state. “Clarke? What’s going on? I heard yelling.”

“I didn’t hear anything,” Clarke said innocently. “Are you sure you weren’t just dre-” That’s when she saw Harper come out of the room behind him, in a similar disheveled state. “Hey Harp,” she said. 

“What’s going on?” Harper asked.

“Nothing, I was just about to hit the bed.”

“Okay,” she said, walking right back in, dragging the stupefied Monty along. 

“That is two making out sessions I interrupted successfully in one fell swoop.”

“Jealous?” Lexa mocked.

“Maybe.”

They stood there in silence once again, Lexa’s eyes moving between two sapphires and pink, similar to the way Clarke’s eyes moved.

It was Clarke, as usual, that broke the silence. “I should go to my room before Octavia comes back. I want to have a nice rest before I die.”

“Good night Clarke.”

“Good night Lexa.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Better late than never, as they say. For any suggestions and criticisms, please comment.


	4. Coalition of twelve clans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The meeting begins, tensions go up and down. Clarke, Octavia, Lincoln, Anya, and Lexa have a little fun, get a little drunk.

Lexa waited outside of her throne room, alongside Clarke, Kane and Octavia. No weapon was allowed in the throne room for anyone other than Heda, her advisors and guards. Instead, each clan leader or representative was allowed two guards to accompany them. So, Clarke chose Kane so he would learn the lay of the land, beside he was the head of security in the space. Octavia chose to tag along for the same reason she was rarely anywhere beside Clarke, so basically, Clarke had no idea why. 

 

After an announcement from inside, the guards opened the door and Lexa strode in, confidence and arrogance seeping from her and obviously injuring some of the egos inside, at least that’s all Clarke could see before the doors closed. 

 

What followed was twenty minutes of nervous waiting, which seemed pass too quickly and too slowly at the same time. The eternal hell.

 

They stood in silence for the first ten minutes, waiting anxiously. Her nervous fidgeting must have bugged Octavia enough that she broke the silence. “It will be fine Clarke.”

 

She didn’t answer, instead chose to focus on regulating her breathing pattern. Kane joined in soon enough. “Clarke, you can do this. I’ve seen what you are capable of when you set your mind to it.”

 

“I know I can. But God! I hate waiting.”

 

With an incoherent announcement from the room, the guards moved to open the door. “You got this princess,” Octavia murmured to her.

 

“I got this.”

 

 

 

 

 

For Lexa, hiding her feelings was a second nature. She excelled at it, even better than the mentor who thought her, Titus. For that, and many more things, she was grateful to her teacher. Clarke, on the other hand, was not so good at it. She had one of the most expressive faces Lexa had ever seen, though for what Lexa knew of Skaikru, it was a trait they all pretty much shared. So it surprised her to see the confidence oozing from Wanheda, for that’s who she was right at this second. The girl Lexa left outside the throne room was Clarke Griffin, an eighteen year old girl that carried too much responsibilities. The woman, nay, the goddess that walked in was someone else completely, only remnant from her old self was how she couldn’t help but admire the room.

 

Clarke walked in, giving a small bow to Lexa and took her seat.

 

“Welcome Skaikru and Wanheda to our meeting.”

 

“Thank you commander. On behalf of Sky people, I am thankful to you for opening your doors to us, and allowing us the means to show that we want peace.” 

 

Commander continued, “Two weeks ago, in light of Klark kom Skaikru becoming the formal leader for her people, Trikru and Skaikru have made a new treaty that involves safe passage and trade. Today’s meeting, though, is not about that. Today, leaders of the coalition will question Wanheda and five months from now, we will reconvene to decide whether or not to extend the treaty to include all of the coalition.” She let her words sink for a second. “You may ask any and all questions you have. As the eldest of those present, Josha kom Ingranrona will have the first question.”

 

Josha was one of Lexa’s favorite leaders to deal with. He was a plain-spoken man, somewhere over his sixtieth summer, who enjoyed the peace coalition offered and one of Lexa’s closest allies. He pondered for a moment before asking, “You speak of peace but since Skaikru landed on our lands, all you have done begs to differ. What assurances do we have to believe you?”

 

“You have my word. Yes, since the moment we step foot on this earth, we’ve had to fight. First with Trikru, then the mountain. Neither of those wars was our intent. Our war with Trikru started over misunderstandings and ignorance, while our war with the mountain, well, they were monsters to all of us.” 

 

“You say misunderstanding like you didn’t burn down a village full of innocents,” commented Hakim, the king of Boudalan, his tone way pass the line of disrespect. 

 

“We didn’t mean to. We didn’t know there was a village at that location. I feel deep regret for the innocent lives that were lost that day,” Clarke exhaled, the sincerity in her loud and clear.

 

Lexa watched on as the questions poured out on Clarke, who answered them calmly, maneuvering expertly. It was all going well until Nia that is. “Tell me child, why shouldn’t we just wipe you out?” she asked in a tone what could only be described as condescending, and followed it with a sneer. Lexa failed to stop the low growl that came out of her. Thankfully no one but Titus noticed, who gave her a glare.

 

“Because,  _ Nia _ , you will find it hard to accomplish. Don’t get me wrong, the coalition is more than capable of making Skaikru an anecdote in history. But we will not go down easy. A hundred ‘children’, as you said, were the ones that massacred three hundred highly trained soldiers. We lost only thirty that day,” Clarke answered, voice so calm and cold that it send shivers down Lexa’s spine. She saw Titus’s eyes widen unexpecting the boldness from the blonde. “None of those children had prior training in combat.”

 

“You dare speak to me in such a tone?!” Nia growled, fuming. 

 

“You can’t expect me to respect someone that sends other people to do their dirty work,” Clarke answered calmly. “Prince Roan asks where he can collect his bounty from?” she mocked, smiling sweetly.

 

Lexa was surprised about Clarke’s remarks about the prince. She’s sure Clarke and the wayward prince was getting along good, otherwise, why would Clarke practically order her to override his banishment? Maybe something went wrong? Or maybe Roan decided to try to double up and get the reward his mother was offering, though Lexa doubted it. Roan maybe a homeless wayward, but one thing he was not, dishonorable.

 

The room was silent so silent and tense after Clarke finished that a feather dropping might’ve set thing off. Yanni kom Ouskejon’s laughter was what sliced through that silence, making everyone look at him like he was crazy. “I’m sorry Heda, but I can’t believe Indra’s clan lost the battle to hundred untrained goufa.”

 

Everyone relaxed a bit, the room losing its stiffness by a touch. Indra huffed at her seat. “We didn’t know Wanheda was present.”

 

Saying Clarke was shocked would be an understatement. If she had any less self-control, she’d have to pick up her jaw from the floor on her way out, though part of her was sure Indra said what she said for the sake of her commander’s wishes to ensure peace.

 

The meeting continued on for hours, tensions rising and lowering. Lexa watched on impassively, which was hard at times. Watching Clarke work her magic was thrilling. This woman, this goddess was truly a weakness to her, a weakness she would readily own up to if not for the past. 

 

Only emotion she showed during the meeting was when Gilla asked, “What about the mountain? Skaikru and mountain men had a lot in common. What’s stopping you from taking over it? You can’t deny that it would be a safe place to hide.” She couldn’t help but be intrigued. Though she and Clarke agreed upon all matters regarding mountain, part of her was unsure about the matter. What was stopping her, indeed?

 

Though Clarke was much more free with her emotions than Lexa, she successfully avoided showing any during the meeting, other than the occasional smile and glare. Until now that is. The fury that was present in Clarke’s face was a testament to why she was Wanheda, why Trikru warriors that were ever in her presence respected her so much.

 

“Damn that place and all that ever lived there!” Clarke roared, standing up involuntarily. “I will never allow anyone, and that is anyone, to live in that place. Including you lot.” 

 

The shock on Kane’s face told Lexa that this was not a matter they agreed on. Maybe some of the Skaikru disagreed with their princess’ decision. Nevertheless, she had faith in Clarke. If Wanheda said so, the mountain would be a graveyard forevermore. On that, they wholeheartedly agreed.

 

The room plunged into a small silence once again, none daring to speak. So it was Lexa who asked, “What do you suggest then?”

 

“Let me blow it up,” Clarke said, sitting back a little calmly. 

 

“You can do that?” asked Tom, the leader of Trishana. 

 

Clarke smiled at him softly, “have you met me?” 

 

Lexa knew arrogance when she saw one. She was the expert on it after all. It was an essential tool in her arsenal. Though she never enjoyed the trait, she knew showing a little arrogance when the moment calls for it never hurt.

 

“Why haven’t you done so already if you feel so strongly about it?” asked Luna, though the question was out of curiosity, there was still a lingering doubt there, Lexa could tell.

 

“Well, our experience blowing things up so far did not go well with Trikru. I wanted commander’s approval first,” Clarke said, “It is her land after all.”

 

Lexa couldn’t help but puff her chest, thinking ‘damn right’, though a little touched with the consideration Clarke was showing for her people. They made eye contact for the first time during the meeting, nodding each other respectfully. 

 

 

 

 

 

The rest of the meeting was quite uneventful. The sun was already well on its way to setting when Lexa finally strode out of her room, followed by Titus and most of the leaders.

 

Clarke, though, stayed behind with Indra, Luna, and Gilla. Her small group of allies, apparently. “So, how did I do?”

 

“You did well Skai girl,” Indra answered with a nod.

 

“Well? She killed it! Did you see the ice bitch's face when you told her off?” Octavia disagreed excitedly. Last time Octavia was this excited, she was yelling about ‘bitches’. 

 

The grounders in the room all raised their eyebrows in confusion. “It’s an expression,” explained Kane. “But I agree. You did great Clarke. Though I’m a bit lost on your remarks regarding our resident prince.”

 

“Roan is an ace I’m not willing to let Nia know. He will be a great asset when the time comes. Besides, what better way to throw her off her game,” Clarke said with a smirk. “Wasn’t it all the better after that. She sat there, pondering.”

 

Clarke felt proud, and tired, the stress of the day finally catching up to her. “I’m just glad it’s over. What do you think our chances of extending the treaty at the next meeting?”

 

Gilla answered first, “I think you did well but there is still some work to do.”

 

Luna agreed with a nod. Indra was much more contemplative. “It’ll take some work but I think you are well on your way to becoming a part of the coalition.”

 

“There will be war,” came Lexa’s calm voice. Everyone turned to see her walking in with Titus in tow. “Nia will not let the insult slide.”

 

“You must be Titus. I am Clarke,” Clarke said, extending her arm to the man.

 

Silence.

 

Only response Titus gave was the condescending puff of air he let go. 

 

“Okay then,” Clarke said, retracting her hand, not the least bit affected by Titus’s attitude. “So what do you suggest we do about Nia?”

 

“For now, nothing. When we extend the treaty, her hands will be tied. She won’t be able to move against you because it will mean disobeying me.”

 

They all stood in a semi-awkward silence for a couple of seconds.

 

“Commander, if you don’t mind, I’m famishing, as I’m sure rest of our people do,” Kane said with reverence. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The commander directed them to a small dining hall at her small palace. Octavia going ahead to bring rest of the Skaikru who walked in the hall chattering excitedly, except a silent Jasper. Clarke felt bad for the boy, she did but the way he acted lately was not at all acceptable. The servants came in with trays and trays of food. It was a small feast altogether, all kinds of delicious food and wine. Anya joined them after a short while as well.

 

The chatter rose in volume again once everyone was fed enough. Though the Skaikru kept to themselves mostly, they weren’t too shy to ask their questions or give their comments from time to time to the rest of the grounders.

 

“Have you had time to consider my offer?” asked Clarke.

 

“What offer?” asked Octavia with an inconspicuous wiggle with her eyebrows. 

 

Everyone seemed interested in the question, silencing immediately. Lexa thought about deflecting for a moment but decided against it. “Clarke was kind enough to offer her help with those rescued from the mountain.”

 

“What kind of help?” Kane asked, turning towards the blonde.

 

“I offered to take some of them to Arkadia with us,” Clarke answered with a shrug that said it wasn’t a big deal. Though according to the everyone else in the room, it was. Without waiting for anyone to ask anything else, she continued, “We can help them, and it would be good for our people to have some exposure to the people they are neighbors with. So far, all they’ve seen of ‘grounders’ was during a war of some kind. They need to realize that we are not dealing with savage people, we are dealing with ordinary folk that are no different from us, other than culture.”

 

“And now we have to live with these people,” Jasper complained, though much less enthusiastically than Clarke would’ve expected. 

 

“Jasper, enough,” Clarke sighed. “I understand you are in pain but we are guests here. Behave accordingly or I will leave you here to live with ‘these people’.” What followed was an awkward silence. Jasper was gauging Clarke, trying to decide whether she would or not. He must’ve decided not to risk it because he nodded with a huff.

 

“And they can help us adapt to the life on the ground. There are a lot of skills we lack,” Octavia commented, returning the attention to the topic at hand. Clarke had discussed her ideas with her. Though younger girl was somewhat impulsive, she was smart. Clarke couldn’t help but wonder what she would be like if she had a normal childhood, or any kind of childhood other than the purgatory she grew up in. Would she be Chancellor Clarke could never be? A calm and collected one, understanding yet unforgiving.

 

“That… is nice of you,” Luna commented. “I think that would be good for everyone. It’d help ease the added stress on Polis’ resources and it’d help Skaikru ease into the coalition.”

 

Gilla nodded, “I agree. What’s there to think about really, Heda?”

 

“I’d need clan leaders’ approval.”

 

“You have our approval,” Gilla said. “And I’m sure Indra would approve too.”

 

“If other clan leaders don't agree, we can still take in those from Trikru, Floukru, and Louwanda. How many of the camp members are from those three clans?”

 

“There are three hundred from Trikru, hundred of which are the survivors of TonDC. Twenty-five from Floukru and thirty-three from Louwanda,” Indra gave the numbers. “Heda, if need be, I can spend the winter in Arkadia with our people.” 

 

This must be Indra’s must trusting act ever in her life, for she’s never the type to trust anyone with her people. Or she must miss having Octavia as her second. Or she wants to spy on Skaikru. Or… ‘Anyway’. Whatever the reason, Clarke was never the type to kick a gift horse in the mouth. 

 

Lexa considered for long, long minutes, finally nodding. “Okay. But there are still issues we need to address to.”

 

“Address them, we shall,” Clarke answered chipperly. 

 

They spent next hour or so discussing possibilities and coming to an agreement. Clarke couldn’t help the blossoming hope in her chest. This was a good idea that would help everyone, as long as nothing major went wrong. 

 

“We can also help with the transportation of those too weak to travel by foot. Both to Arkadia and to Polis,” Kane offered.

 

“Yes, the vehicle we used today can be outfitted to need,” Monty said. “We can also get an additional vehicle from Arkadia if we leave ahead of you.” 

 

“Okay, the clan meetings will take two more days, right? Couple of us can go to Arkadia to make the necessary adjustments on the vehicles and meet us at the camp. The rest of us, including you guys,” she said indicating at the grounders, “can meet them at the camp. This way, you can make sure your people are well taken care of and you get to see Arkadia and meet some of our people,” Clarke offered. “Hell, I’ll throw in a feast for you to sweeten the deal.”

 

Both Luna and Gilla seemed appreciative of the idea, Luna especially excited about seeing where the Skaikru live.

 

“Besides, I’ll introduce both of you to our engineers who can make radios for you so you can find out what supplies she’d need.”

 

Both leaders nodded eagerly. “I’ll send someone to bring some tech. I believe we have some redios from the old world, though we were never able to figure out how to use them or whether or not they can be used,” Luna noted.

 

After dealing with all the possible issues, they came to a decision. Two hundred grounders will be moving in with Skaikru for the winter. Skaikru had more than necessary rooms, especially if they continue to build houses until the first snow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The group slowly dispersed, leaving Clarke and Lexa alone. They sat in comfortable silence for a little longer, enjoying the companionable calm. 

 

“Thank you,” Lexa said in a voice so small, Clarke was sure it couldn’t have come from the fearless leader.

 

“For what?”

 

“For being here. For not hating me.”

 

“I wanted to. I wanted to hate you and myself,” Clarke sighed. “That’s why I left at first. I was sure I couldn’t handle the hate, the pain. I killed all those people and I wanted to hate myself for it. I couldn’t.”

 

“You did what you had to, Clarke,” Lexa offered.

 

“I know and I don’t regret it. Yes, I feel bad about the innocent lives I took but I had no other choice.”

 

“If you were not in pain, why did you stay away for so long?” Lexa asked.

 

“Because it was so serene, living in nature. Alone with my thoughts, no expectations, no responsibilities, no judgment. Only survival, only the hunt. I felt alive. It felt so damn good.”

 

Lexa smiled a broken smile. “I can only imagine,” she said, continuing after a beat. “I was afraid you left because…”

 

“Because, what?”

 

“I’ve read once that animals sometimes leave their packs when they felt they were about to die,” Lexa said.

 

“Nah, I’m too beautiful to die,” Clarke said, trying to mimic Raven’s cockiness. 

 

“You are.”

 

They let the silence wash away the comment, though both girls were secretly sure the other could hear their frantically beating heart.

 

“I felt sorry for you, you know?” Clarke said sympathetically. 

 

“Why?”

 

“It must be hard. Constantly living under pressure, always having to answer for your decisions, always having to do what’s best for everyone. Never being able to be selfish and just do what you want. The loneliness.”

 

Lexa was barely able to stop the tears that filled her eyes from spilling. “It is.”

 

“I am here, you know. If you ever want to talk about it. I know you are probably not the type to pour your heart into someone but if it ever feels too much to bear, you can talk to me. Who knows, maybe I can understand,” Clarke offered. “Though I’m sure I have it much, much more easier compared to you,” she laughed, earning herself a laugh from the brunette as well. “Seriously though, you were kind enough to offer your advice during the mountain, no matter how unasked for it was,” she smiled. “It’s the least I can do.”

 

“Thank you Klark,” Lexa said sincerely. “I may take you up on that offer.”

 

“Please do. Who knows? Maybe hearing you complain might make me feel better about the crap I constantly have to deal with.”

 

“Oh, do tell. What crap do you have to deal with?” Lexa asked, amused.

 

“Well, I can certainly live without the constant criticism from my mother,” Clarke said.

 

“I can imagine.”

 

“Oh, you have no idea. The woman is constantly nagging. You know how bad it feels to have the only woman who is supposed to support you no matter what judge you and disagree with every single decision you make?” Clarke asked, “the woman is unpleasable.”

 

“I was never your mother’s fan, no offense,” Lexa said, her tone saying more than her words did.

 

“Can’t imagine why? Don’t get me wrong, I love her, I do. But I can certainly do without the constant thorn in my side.”

 

They continued talking throughout the evening and well into the night. Interrupted only once by Octavia who came to ask Clarke to join them on visiting one of the city’s taverns. The blonde declined and Octavia left with a wiggle on her eyebrows, leaving a blushing blonde and a smirking brunette behind. 

 

They talked about everything and nothing, mostly senseless gossiping and enthusiastic storytelling. Clarke told the story of how she hunted the Pauna. Lexa wishfully complained about some of the harsh training methods Anya used on her. Clarke told her of Wells, her best friend, and biggest regret. Lexa talked about how she and Luna used to sneak out under Titus’s nose and get in all sort of trouble.

 

It was a refreshing night for the young leaders. They weren’t really leaders that night, just two young women getting to know each other, and falling for each other even more involuntarily. 

 

Clarke was in the middle of explaining her bromance with Roan when a worried Anya barged in the room. “Lexa? Where are you? What are you-” 

 

Both girls jumped from theirs seats like couple young girls that got caught, blushing a little. Neither of them realized how much closer they had moved to each other since they began talking. Lexa’s blush was soon to change into a scowl. “What do you need Anya?” she asked in a cold voice.

 

Anya looked unaffected and mildly amused. Raising a commander would do that to you. “What do we have here?”

 

“I ask you again, what do you need, Anya?” Lexa asked, unimpressed and hell a lot more annoyed.

 

“Do you know what time it is? You will fall asleep during tomorrow’s meetings.”

 

It was Clarke’s turn to mock the young commander. “Wait. does mighty Heda has a bedtime?”

 

“Mockery is not the-”

 

“Product of a strong mind, Klark,” Clarke said with her best commander impression, earning a smirk from Anya and a fake scowl from Lexa. “I know.”

 

Anya got their attention back by clearing her throat. “As I was saying-”

 

“Oh shush, Anya. You can, of course, join us if you want,” Clarke reprimanded. Anya seemed to want to kill her at first, then decided to join with a shrug that said ‘might as well’.

 

They were soon joined by Octavia and Lincoln. It was good to watch the interaction between Anya and the muscular man. Turns out, they were childhood friends, growing up in the same village, both getting trained by Indra. Until Lincoln decided to become a healer, that is. The night went along, everyone sharing small anecdotes from their pasts. It was fun to hear the misadventures of ‘ _ strik heda’ _ . Turns out, the strong woman of authority was quite the hell-raiser, constantly getting in trouble and earning herself a beatdown by Anya, though Anya and Lincoln were not much better, apparently. 

 

Clarke and Octavia especially liked the story of how Lincoln and Anya, followed by a young, very young Lexa, got ‘accidentally’ high on jobi nuts, Lincoln broking her arm, Lexa getting in a giggling fit, Anya getting into a fight with tree over a boy. How very Anya like. The woman would fight her own shadow if she could.

 

Lexa particularly enjoyed how a young Clarke was caught in the Ark library looking at pictures of the earth after curfew by her father, who instead of taking the child home, sat with her on the floor and read to her about the earth.

 

By the time Indra found them with a scowl they were all quite drunk on wine and stories, mostly stories, so getting caught by the mama bear sent them in a hushed fit of giggles which in turn made Indra scowl harder. It was Octavia that pushed the woman maybe a bit too much by asking her, though not quite managing to make out the words, to the young girl back as her second.

 

Indra decided it was her duty to accompany her childish Heda to her room. Though she scowled, she couldn’t help the feeling of warm seeing Lexa enjoying herself for once, caused. She worshiped the ground the commander walked on, so she was glad to see her shed from all her trappings. She was infinitely more glad the young woman wasn’t found by Titus. She could imagine the hell that would cause. The man was never fan of anything enjoyable ever. Adding Wanheda, who he fought hard to convince his heda to kill, into the mix… No, nothing good would come out of it. 

 

Anya was the one to carry legendary Wanheda, mountain slayer, to her room, literally. The woman certainly couldn’t hold her drink. She tried to hate her for it, she really did but she failed, miserably. The blonde was a delicate soul, and adorably childish when drunk apparently. It was obvious the first day on that damned bridge. Though had she thought it weak at the time, this awkward girl was nothing weak. She proved that, time and time again. Preventing another village massacre was what finally convinced Anya to the goodness and strength the blonde wore like an armour. Damn girl!

 

Lincoln was the only one openly enjoyed carrying his burden, his love, his reason, his life. This young yet fiery soul was his purpose in life, his other half. He couldn’t help but think all the pain following her heart caused and how he would do it all again. If he could go back to the moment he first laid eyes on the young girl and change it all, he wouldn’t. He would embrace the torture he endured, lovingly. He would be banished from his home and smile. He’d die a thousand times and live a thousand hells for this woman, this untameable fire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next day, Kane, Jackson, Monty, Jasper, and Harper left Polis. There were a lot of preparations needed to be done and they had strict orders to tell only the select few what was going to happen, Clarke made sure of that. She also had a little talk with Jasper and managed to even get a hug from the boy. It was an awkward hug but a hopeful one. 

 

Bellamy, Raven, both Millers, Roan, and Sinclair would be the only ones told. Bellamy, Roan and Harper would focus on hunting, with the help of clueless hunters of the camp, both for the feast and so the additional two hundred souls wouldn’t mean the camp would go hungry. Raven and Sinclair’s duty was to help turn two rovers into some sort of bus that would help transfer the survivors. The Miller family’s duty was to implement a strict gun policy and prepare the Arkadia to accommodate for its newest members with the help of Kane and Jackson.

 

The rest spent the two days they have left to enjoy Polis, visiting every inch of the city by day, drinking by night. Clarke and Wick’s favorite part of the city was the enormous library that held countless books, both old and new. Clarke was surprised by the number of books that survived the nuclear apocalypse. Lexa explained that the commanders that came before her all very supportive of the library, making sure it was preserved and improved.

 

So with the fun they were having, the two days went by in a blur to the remaining Skaikru. For Lexa, it was a limbo between absolute joy and boring hell. Her hate for the queen of ice increasing daily, while her love for Skai Praisa deepening the same. She was unwilling to share the details of the meetings with Clarke at first, finding it unnecessary to share the secrets of coalition but after realizing Luna was not on the same page and Gilla was growing fond of the blonde, she started to cave in.

 

The zigzag of the week continued with Nia’s proclaimed desire to send some of the Azgeda survivors to Arkadia with the rest and Clarke’s offer to try to convince Anya to see her mother for healing. When Clarke’s visit to Polis was coming to a close, Lexa had enough of the unbalance in her life and for once, she was glad to be visiting Arkadia. 

 

If only she knew...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your kind comments so far. Please continue to share your thoughts and suggestions, and ask your questions.


	5. Honor guests

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The return journey to Arkadia with some addition and a feast went well.

It was early morning and time to leave Polis. Clarke had never imagined she could be happy and sad to leave a place before. Happy because she was going back to her people, to work for a better future. Sad because no matter how much a stranger she was to this capital, she loved it. It was full of life and laughter and sweat and food and booze. It was as how life should’ve been all along and Clarke felt a pang of jealousy, and a newfound determination to replicate the life Polisians were living for her people.

 

With determination set on her shoulders, she walked out of her room with her bag on her back and walked towards the gates of Polis, the one they came in. Apparently, Polis had multiple entrances, all of them heavily guarded even though it was a neutral ground and a holy one. Lexa had explained that Polis was considered ‘the commander’s city’ and had never seen war, at least not after the nuclear one. It was an untold rule, never attack Polis. The commander’s duty had always been to protect this neutrality and be the mediator of peace amongst the clans. A duty, Lexa raised up a notch and she became the enforcer of it.

 

Even though Polis was in the middle of Trikru land, the select paths that led from every clan were considered a part of it, and such was also considered no-war zone. Clarke couldn’t help but appreciate the fact, knowing that even this group of warrior based clans were respecting the concept of sanctuary.

 

Octavia and Lincoln joined her on her way to the stables. The rest of their party was already up and waiting for them, surprisingly. Skaikru were rarely a morning people. Turns out, even though everyone enjoyed their time in this foreign city, they were all too happy to return to their people. Josi, the grounder Jasper had picked a fight with, led Clarke’s silver stallion and handed the beast’s reins to Clarke, who took it with a nod, “Mochof Josi.”

 

They watched each other for a beat before Clarke continued, “Thank you for your understanding about the incident at the feast.”

 

Josi gave a respectful nod, “you are Wanheda.”

 

“Nevertheless, Jasper was out of line. If there is anything I can do to repay-”

 

“My brother was taken by the mountain,” Josi cut in, a little too enthusiastically to be considered rude. “I heard he was to be taken in by Skaikru. I asked Heda if I could join him. She said to ask for your permission.”

 

“You are welcome to join us. I’d be honored to have you as our guest for the winter,” Clarke said, earning her an earnest smile and a ‘mochof’.

 

Luna, Gilla, Lexa and a small battalion of grounders soon joined them and it was time to move out. It would take them two hours to make it to TonDC and another six hours to make it to Arkadia. Out of two hundred grounders that were to join Skaikru for the winter, eighty would ride the ‘busses’, and over forty would ride alongside them on horses. The rest were to be transported the next day.

 

They rode faster this time, which did no favors to Clarke’s injuries but she endured. She could only imagine the hell she’d be going through if it wasn’t for the near overdose of pain medication she took. She was damn glad she brought Jackson along who left Clarke with enough painkillers to make her giggle constantly even with the pain she felt.

 

Somewhere along the back, Octavia and Lincoln were riding with Gilla and Luna. Lincoln and Luna were reminiscing while Gilla answered a barrage of questions Octavia was asking, and visa versa. Luna was intrigued by Clarke to say the least. Lincoln seemed to always keep an eye on the girl in case of any danger, which Luna couldn’t help but find weird. She knew Lincoln, the man was always a peace loving one to a fault, similar to herself, not a warrior or a guard.

 

“Tell me about Wanheda,” she demanded at last.

 

“What about her?”

 

“She’s a mystery, that one. She says she wants peace but was marked by death to do its bidding. She’s young in age but old in spirit,” Luna shared.

 

“She’s all that and more,” Lincoln said, and added with a laugh, “the first time I’ve met her, she had her people torture me.”

 

Luna gawked at him at first, followed by shock, followed by disbelief, followed by many more contradicting emotions.

 

“And now, I’d die if she told me to,” continued Lincoln. “What does that tell you?”

 

Luna thought about it for a second. “She earned your loyalty?”

 

Lincoln nodded. “She saved my life, twice. But that is not the only reason. She’d die for her people, not just so they would survive but so they would thrive. She’s always afraid, not for herself but for her people, but she never wavers.”

 

“Right after the bombing of TonDC, I was held at gunpoint by a mountain man, the one that helped them bomb the right position, at least that was the explanation Octavia gave me. I demanded her to let the man kill me, so she could save her people. She told me I was her people, and she shot me,” Lincoln said and paused, just so he could watch the shock on Luna’s face before he explained better. “She shot through me and killed the mountain man. She was also the one who fought so hard to turn me back to man after I was turned into a reaper.”

 

“You were a reaper?” Luna asked, her eyes wide open.

 

Lincoln answered with a nod. “Did Heda or Indra told you how she made an alliance in the first place?” Luna shook her head. “You should definitely ask Indra.” Luna left his side with a nod that said she would and picked up her pace to join Indra, Lexa, and Anya, the trio riding in silence.

 

“Indra, Lincoln says I should ask you how Clarke managed to convince Heda to an Alliance,” she told her.

 

Indra wasn’t pleased and she wasn’t shy to show it by a low growl. She turned to her Heda who gave her a nod of consent. “She walked into the tent and demanded it,” she cut short. Though knowing Luna, she’d have to elaborate, that, she was sure of.

 

Lexa grinned. “That’s one way to put it.”

 

“What’s another way?” Luna asked, and Lexa told the story, in detail.

 

When Lexa told her the part about Anya, Luna couldn’t believe it. “So you escaped the mountain with her and decided to make peace, even after she killed all of your warriors?”

 

“I did,” Anya concurred. “I was going to take her to Heda as a consolation prize but she managed the best me in my weakened state and took me towards her camp. When we got close, she cut me loose. When I asked her why, she said she wasn’t weak and that we could take on the mountain if we worked together. Then her people shot me.”

 

“Does shooting people a show of affection for Skaikru?” Luna asked, finding the story of Skaikru and Clarke more and more bizarre by the minute. “First Lincoln, now you.”

 

They rode on rest of the way in silence, Luna trying to make sense of what she’s been told.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They made it in TonDC just under two hours according to Clarke’s beloved watch. Though it was preferable to start moving right away to take advantage of daylight, the busses was yet to arrive and Clarke was secretly glad for it. She dismounted her horse and started patting him. Saying the horse was majestic would be an understatement, though definitely not wrong. Clarke felt a strong attachment to the animal even though their companionship was very new, probably because… ‘Don’t go there Clarke’, Clarke thought to herself.

 

“How do you like your new horse so far?” came Lexa’s voice from behind her back.

 

“He’s magnificent, and strong too, though I’m not an expert,” Clarke answered.

 

“Yes, he is. He’s one of best horses in all coalition lands. He’s also my horse’s brother,” Lexa said.

 

Clarke raised her eyebrows questioningly.

 

“Only the best for Skai Praisa,” Lexa explained. “What did you name him?”

 

“Skaifaya.” (Skyfire)

 

“Very fitting,” Lexa exclaimed. “After all, Skai Praise came to our land riding a Skaifaya.”

 

“Indeed.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They had to wait only an hour for Monty, Bellamy, Jasper and Harper to arrive. They didn’t waste time with niceties. They loaded up the necessary cargo and those too weak to ride horses and left after a speech by Lexa about how proud she was to have such strong and resilient people. Though there was a lingering doubt around the camp regarding Skaikru’s intentions, none raised them. After all, Skaikru was their saviors as much as their commander was.

 

They rode for three hours before taking a break to rest and eat a little filler. After a half an hour rest, they hit the road once again, this time though, Jasper and Bellamy played some music for those inside the busses. They were getting restless, being cramped up in the limited space was not doing anyone any favors considering it was how they spent their time inside the hellhole that was Mount Weather.

 

Clarke rode in silence ahead of the convoy with Lexa. Her mind was busy trying to come up with a speech for the night’s feast, wondering how to explain their new bunkmates. She had faith that most of the camp would not cause any problems. They mostly trusted Clarke, believed in her, which, in truth, was unexpected for Clarke. They were mostly working class that pretty much lived in fear of the council back on Ark. Now, with Clarke in charge, they were more relaxed, they felt safer because Clarke was certainly not someone to judge people on their status.

 

Some though, especially the now less vocal supporters of Pike, would want to use this as ammunition. She could already hear them. ‘The grounders are taking over our camp.’ ‘They will kill us in our sleep’. ‘The chancellor is too weak to stand up to the savages.’ ‘Don’t let them take our home from us.’ ‘Make Arkadia great again.’

 

She would have to be a lot more ruthless this winter. No crime went unpunished. No insult let go. She knew there would be some problem makers within their new guests as well as her own people and she would not hesitate to punish any offenders from either side. She’d show everyone that she was fair but ruthless, at least she hoped she was. She couldn’t make the same mistake she did after Commander demanded Finn. That was a rookie mistake and if it was anyone but Lexa she was dealing with, the Arkadia would be no more.

 

No, she’d take in the survivors and treat them as her own. Same rules, same punishments, no matter the individual, no matter the consequences.

 

When they finally reached within radio distance of the camp, Clarke radioed Kane, telling him to prepare the camp. She had already discussed this with Kane before the man left. Today, every guard on wall was a trusted. No trigger happy xenophobe. Kane answered back confirming the guard rotation and that he’d gather everyone at the gates and keep the people calm.

 

They rode for another hour before coming to the camp. The sun was long gun so they rode under torch light and a little slower. They rode directly to the camp, no additional further notice was necessary and all of the guards were under strict orders not to shoot. There was a shout and Clarke heard Kane ordering the guard to open the gates.

 

She and Lexa rode in, both heads held high, body language communicating calmness. Indra was riding a little back from them with Octavia, the former staying to the right of Lexa while the latter staying left of Clarke. The murmurs had already started before they even entered the camp but had no effect on neither women. Both leaders dismounted slowly and walked towards Kane.

 

“Welcome, Commander, to our camp,” the man said with a small bow.

 

“Thank you, Marcus kom Skaikru. I see you made improvements since the last time I was here,” Lexa complimented.

 

“We have a new chancellor that likes her people tired,” Kane said with a laugh.

 

“That, she does,” Clarke agreed. “Tired people are happy people.”

 

Indra seemed to agree, though did not comment. Abby chose to join them in that moment. “Clarke, what’s going on?”

 

“I will explain everything in a second,” she said, walking towards the newly constructed platform that held a big table. She walked up to it with Lexa next to her and raised her hand to silence the murmurs. “What a warm welcome,” she joked, earning nervous laughters from couple of people while the rest shifted where they stood awkwardly. By now, the convoy had all dismounted and gathered in a separate group from the residents of the camp. “Today, we have guests. So, we decided to throw them a little feast to repay the kindness they showed us. I will make all the necessary announcements at that time,” Clarke explained. “I expect all of you to behave yourselves in front of our guests. Those do not will be punished accordingly.”

 

The murmurs rose again while Clarke walked down the dais with commander in tow. They walked towards the rest of the grounders. “Commander, I’m afraid I’ll have to ask your people to give up their weapons. We have a strict no weapons policy within the camp other than the guards on duty. You, Indra, Luna and Gilla will be allowed to carry with the addition of two guards each,” Clarke ordered calmly.

 

Indra stiffened a little but did not complain. This was a rule they had to respect for it was a rule they enforced as well. Indra walked back to the survivors and those that accompanied them in their journey and gave her orders. Clarke called for Josi who ran up to her immediately. “Commander, I’d like Josi to represent the rest of your people that will stay with us.” Clarke offered.

 

Lexa examined to the young boy for long seconds and nodded. “I expect you to do well during your stay here. Wanheda was kind enough to offer you a stay with your brother. Do not let us down,” she ordered

 

Josi puffed her chest and bowed, “Sha Heda.”

 

“If you have any problems or requests come to me. Do not try to solve problems on your own. Remember, I am in charge here. Okay?” Clarke said firmly.

 

“Okay, Wanheda,” Josi nodded respectfully. Clarke liked the boy. He had a good head on his shoulders and he seemed like a cool-headed person.

 

Roan decided to join them. “Welcome back Wanheda,” he said eagerly.

 

“It’s good to be back, my liege,” Clarke answered. She could see Lexa watching the exchange with interest. “My liege?” the brunette asked.

 

“Welcome Heda,” Roan said respectfully. “Clarke decided to call me that. She said servants used to call their lord or prince that,” he explained.

 

“Well, if you insist on calling me Wanheda, I’m going to keep finding innovative ways to call you,” Clarke complained.

 

“As you wish, Wanheda,” Roan laughed. They were soon joined by Luna and Gilla, both women surprised to find the rogue prince among sky people. “Captain, Chief, it’s good to see you,” he welcomed both ladies.

 

“It’s surprising to see you here Hainofa kom Azgeda. Especially since your mother seemed eager to behead Clarke,” Luna said suspiciously. Her voice might have carried a small ounce of jealousy as well. Apparently, two had a history, or that was the idea Clarke got.

 

“My mother would like to behead everyone. She’s quite fond of that,” Roan said. “Besides, I find it quite entertaining to hunt with Skaikru. They are like giant babies, fumbling through the forest. Except for Wanheda, of course,” he mocked.

 

“And how is Wanheda at hunting?” Gilla asked.

 

“I was able to hunt a prince. I think I do alright,” Clarke offered.

 

“I was being chased by a panther with no weapons. Excuse me for not seeing your traps,” Roan complained.

 

“All I hear are excuses. Were you hanging upside down, caught in one of my traps when I first saw you? You were. End of discussion.”

 

“Be careful Wanheda, it is not a good idea to anger your teacher,” Roan warned jokingly.

 

“Oh, dear! What have I done?” Clarke mocked, bringing her hand to her forehead in a fainting imitation. “Anyway, let’s all get ready for the feast. I’m hungry.”

 

Luna, Gilla, and Lexa both went towards their now erected tents while Roan accompanied Clarke to the medical section. She knew her mother was there instinctively. The older Griffin seemed to run off there whenever she was upset or in need of thinking.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“How was Polis?” Roan asked.

 

“The city was beautiful, the feast otherworldly,” Clarke answered. “I do not have much nice to say about the clan meeting.”

 

“It went badly?”

 

Clarke sighed internally, her shoulders sagged. “No. It went good but God! I hate politics,” she exhaled. “Have I ever told you your mother can be a bitch sometimes?”

 

Roan laughed quite loudly. “You are very wrong if you think she’s ‘a bitch’, as you like to call her, only sometimes.”

 

Clarke half laughed, half sighed. “How were the preparations here? Are we ready for this winter?”

 

“Not yet. But we are getting there.”

 

“Have I told you how glad I am to have you by my side?” Clarke asked. “Really, you’ve been a great help,” she said honestly. “Especially to the morale of young women of Arkadia,” she joked.

 

“I’m not sure if Bellamy would agree with you,” Roan giggled manly.

 

“A little competition won’t hurt him,” Clarke said. “How are things between you two?”

 

“He was a little suspicious of me at first but he’s warming up, I believe,” Roan said honestly.

 

‘Good’, Clarke thought. Bellamy could get territorial from time to time so it was good to see him grow out of some of his less than productive habits. In Clarke’s opinion, Bellamy and Roan were her rocks, both men took initiative, they were steady, trustworthy. Octavia and Raven were her soul, both women full of life and never shy to offer opinions and half-joking insults. Kane was her mentor and Clarke trusted his opinion more than anyone else’s. Abby was her wisdom teeth, sure, once upon a time she served a function but now, she was mostly, just there, causing pain. She was on the verge of losing hope in their relationship.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clarke saw that she was right to assume her mother was in medical. She walked in without a noise, “Hi mom.”

 

Abby jumped from where she was counting inventory, at least that’s what Clarke assumed. “Clarke! You scared me. What are you doing here?”

 

“Well, I’m sure Jackson has told you about my injuries,” she said. It was clear from Abby’s face he didn’t. So she explained without giving her mother a chance to ask a million question a second, “I had a hunting accident. There is a cut on my arm and couple of fractured ribs. I was hoping to get some painkillers. Horse riding was no good to me,” she explained.

 

“We should get a CT scan, get a good look at your injuries,” Abby offered.

 

“I appreciate it mom but not tonight. I’ll come by after breakfast tomorrow, okay?” Clarke asked. She and her mother got along great when they talked medicine. Both women understood each other as a doctor and her apprentice and knew each other’s instincts from back when Clarke help her mother in Ark medical.

 

“Promise me you will come?” Abby asked.

 

“I promise. I have no desire for it to get worse because of negligence.”

 

“Good, now, can you tell me what is commander doing here with so many of her people?” Abby asked.

 

“I’ve offered help with those that were rescued from the mountain. Polis doesn’t have the capacity to offer all of them the necessary housing and medical care,” Clarke said tentatively, expecting Abby to vehemently disagree.

 

She didn’t. “That is nice of you,” was all she said.

 

Clarke was stunned to silence. “Wait, are you okay with this?” she asked.

 

“I am a doctor first and foremost, Clarke. Of course, I’d like to help those in need,” Abby said in a sweet voice. “How long will they stay here for?”

 

“For the duration of winter,” Clarke answered. “They are too weak to travel right now. We need to strengthen them up during that time. It will be a busy winter for you and Jackson for sure. There will probably be diseases as well so we need to keep them close to medical but isolated enough in case of an outbreak.”

 

“That’s good thinking. I see you still have your medical instincts,” Abby smiled.

 

“I do. You were a great teacher,” Clarke praised.

 

“Were?” Abby asked, her eyebrows raised comically. “I’ll have you know I’m an awesome teacher still.”

 

“Would you be willing to teach some of the grounders? I’m sure some of them would be glad to learn from you,” Clarke asked hopefully. Maybe it wasn’t too late for mother and daughter to mend the fences.

 

“Of course. If I get to learn from them, all the better,” the older blonde answered excitedly.

 

“I don’t know if any of those that came with us are healers. Nyko wanted to come but he will be needed in Polis. He sends his regards.”

 

“Even so, I love teaching medicine. It always reminds me of simpler times. How an ankle biter blonde used to follow me around pretending to be a doctor,” Abby said, smiling wishfully.

 

“Well, this winter will be quite busy for you so I’d like to help when I can,” Clarke offered.

 

“I’d love for you to, honey,” Abby said, her smile even bigger than before. “I missed this,” she said a little sadly, indicating the banter between them.

 

“Me too mom. I wish you weren’t always barking at me,” Clarke said, mimicking her mother’s sad smile. “Let’s make a deal, mom. From now on, when you disagree with me, do it when we are alone,” she offered. “I can’t have you second guessing my every move publicly and undermining me. We have to present a united front, no matter our differences. When you do so in public, I have to be short and blunt and it’s not doing us any favors.”

 

“Okay honey, I’ll try,” was all Abby could offer. Seeing the brightness of Clarke’s smile was more than enough incentive to do so. “I have one condition,” she added. “You will make the time for a weekly mother-daughter time. Whether that is in form of dinners or just talks is up to you,” she said in a firm voice.

 

“Deal.” The young blonde went over to take the medicine Abby readied for her and gave her mother a hug. She remembered the hallucination she had when the hundred got high on nuts, the promise she made to her father and it felt good to try to live up to her promise.

 

They separated when an amused Roan cleared his throat. Both women had forgotten he was there. “Let’s go,” Clarke ordered the other two. “We have guests to entertain.”

 

They made their way out of the large ship. On the way, Clarke felt the urge to beg her mother to behave which the older woman promised to.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone was ready for the feast and the set up certainly exceeded Clarke’s expectations though it was not extravagant enough to compete with Polis. But it was more than enough for Skaikru’s first feast on the ground. Monty had set up sound system so fun was definitely on the table. Clarke also successfully convinced Monty to break out his moonshine, all of it, in exchange for the blonde’s go ahead to start his ‘green project’. Raven managed make a couple of flares that could be called little fireworks. Clarke was opposed to the idea at first, both because grounders weren’t the biggest fan of explosives and they’d be hard to make considering the limited resources they had. Raven won that argument. It was hard to argue with the mechanic when she was so excited about blowing something up, no matter how inconsequential.

 

Clarke rose from her seat at the table that was built in her absence and the crown fell into silence with anticipation. She cleared her throat and began her speech. “Today, I am honored to welcome the commander of the coalition, Heda Lexa, leaders of Boat Clan and Shallow Valley Clan, Captain Luna and Chief Gilla, and those rescued from both Mount Weather and TonDC bombing.”

 

“We are here for multiple reasons, first of which is to celebrate our new trading partners. I am also proud to announce that Arkadia will be hosting our allies that were saved for the duration of winter.”

 

Those from Skaikru started whispering in hushed voices, though collectively, they made quite a noise.

 

“This is your chance,” Clarke started once again and crowd silenced. “To show me and the commander that you truly want peace. This is your chance to prove that all we have done for your benefits and in the name of peace weren’t in vain.”

 

“This is your chance to prove you are not cowards, for only cowards would choose to instead of making peace. Peace takes work. It takes effort. It takes will power. Show us that you have it. I speak to both groups of people when I say this: prove to me that you have what it takes to achieve peace, not just speak of it. Prove that you deserve it.”

 

“To our guests, I say this: during your stay here, you are one of us. We will take you in like we would those our mothers gave birth to. You are our brothers and sisters while you are inside these walls. But…” she waited for a breath, “you will live by our rules.”

 

“To our hosts, I say this: I expect you to show our guests how hospitable we, sky people, are. Any disrespect you show to our guests, I will take personally and punish accordingly. For this winter, we have two hundred more brothers and sisters.”

 

“Is that understood?” Clarke asked in a strong voice and received a positive response, mostly from the visiting party. “So, without further ado, let’s have our first feast. Eat, drink, enjoy yourselves. I, for one, will enjoy waking all of you up at an ungodly hour tomorrow and make loud noises,” she said with a laugh and raised her wine and took a sip. With that, Skaikru’s first true feast began.

 

“That was a very nice speech,” Lexa appraised.

 

“For once, I agree with the commander,” Abby commented. “That was a lovely speech, honey.”

 

“Who knew Clarke could make speeches. Wait…” Raven said, fake pondering. “I did. ‘We are not gounders!’” she imitated Clarke.

 

“Different time, different speech,” Clarke shrugged. Seeing Lexa’s questioning but amused stare she explained. “It was when Anya jumped inside the dropship,” she said between bites.

 

“Yeah, I remember,” Anya joined in. “Everyone was trying to kill me and you stopped them by saying that,” Anya pondered for a second. “It seems you saved my life twice skygirl.”

 

“Call us even. You saved me twice while we were escaping the mountain as well,” she supplied with a smirk.

 

“I feel ashamed to be even with you. I have to change that,” the older blonde mocked.

 

“You are a bit unstable, aren’t you?” Luna joked. “It seems to me that you can’t make up your mind about whether to hurt someone or help them. First, you tortured Lincoln. Then you saved him. Then shot him to save him. Same with Anya and Trikru. Make up your mind woman!” she fake reprimanded.

 

“I only regret saving Anya. She turned out to be a pain in the ass.”

 

“Okay,  I changed my mind. I won’t save you again.”

 

Abby watched the exchange with curious eyes while Lexa watched it with amusement. Abby enjoyed seeing Clarke’s carefree banter. It reminded her of simpler times when Griffin and Jaha families would get together and watch ancient football games. Lexa enjoyed watching the slowly blossoming friendship between her mentor and her… equal? No matter the label, she felt like a young girl who was happy that her bigger sister got along with her partner, because that’s what Anya was.

 

The night went by quite enjoyably. Clarke half expected to have to stop minor fights or at least there to be a pinch of tension. There wasn’t any of those. Probably because this was the first feast those from the sky had and the grounders present were all too happy to be alive.

 

The food was devoured and alcohol flowed. There weren’t tables set other than the one the leaders were sitting so as soon as eating slowed down, Monty performed his magic and dancing kicked off. There was even a little competition going between Monroe and Josi, though the grounder didn’t know how to dance in this kind of music. Soon followed Raven’s fireworks, which at first put grounders on defensive. When they realized it wasn’t an attack, mostly because the Skaikru was enjoying the show quite a bit, they let themselves be awed by the colors.

 

Clarke spent all night watching her people enjoy themselves and some even mingle with the grounders. This was a good idea indeed.

 

What she failed to see was two women watching her with hateful gazes, each plotting and clueless to other’s existence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I'd love to hear your ideas. I'd also like a beta reader if any of you have the free time.


	6. Ai gonplei nou ste odon nowe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Planning the future of Skaikru, training with Roan, an attempted assassination... Clarke has a busy day.

The next morning was busy for Clarke and the company. After a quick breakfast and a check up from Abby, everyone involved in the decision-making process, including Abby, Lexa, and Indra, gathered at council chambers. There were a lot of decisions to be made. They discussed how they could push both Arkadians and grounders to integrate and what rules to implement to make sure the winter goes smooth for two widely different cultures that would reside in the camp.

 

The grounders had valuable knowledge of the ground. How to hunt. How to make clothes out from animal hides. How to fight. Though those rescued from the mountain were still not strong enough to participate in hunting or training, survivors of TonDC were highly capable people. So they decided on a training arrangement. They also decided to ask those willing to take seconds, including Abby, Jackson, and Clarke.

 

They also worked on a new law and punishment system. Arkadia was still to implement a new law to replace the barbaric system they inherited from the Ark, even though they didn’t refer to it anymore. Capital punishment was still to be used but only for most gruesome crimes like murder and rape. For other crimes, they decided on lashing and temporary imprisonment. Banishment was still an option. In the end, they decided to decide punishments on a case by case basis. After all, the reason behind a crime is just as important as the crime itself, if not more. Not every killer deserves the same punishment, not every thief. They decided on a minimum and a maximum punishment for each crime. They decided on using the old world justice system with some tweaks. Three judges would preside over every trial. One of the judges had to be a council member chosen by the council. Clarke had a final say but a unanimous vote from the council could veto Clarke's final decision. 

They also decided to hold weekly town hall meetings where citizens would get to ask their questions and the council would inform citizens on the on-goings and new decisions. 

Clarke asked Indra to join council meetings for the duration of their stay, which surprised everyone but was welcomed, mostly. The blonde also announced, with Lexa’s approval, their plans to relocate and the group started to work on a plan.

 

At first, Lexa was reluctant to give more land to Skaikru. After all, she was giving away her people’s land. Clarke made a good argument though. In the short run, the land wasn’t much of an issue for Skaikru. They were a people with a small population. But after sufficiently adjusting to the ground, a sudden spike in pregnancies was to be expected. It was Bellamy who pointed out that after every major war, or times of trouble that ended in a large number of causalities, people tended to procreate more often. Sky people were now in adjustment period after three centuries of harsh laws, a year of wars and a lot of casualties. Oh, yes, it was clear that over the next decade, the population of sky people would almost double, if not more.

 

In the end, it was the fact that without this compromise, tensions would rise back in the future between the two clans.  Clarke’s promise of distributing a small portion of their produce from farming to the small villages nearby was what sealed the deal.

 

With the new deal between Skaikru and Trikru, the land Skaikru now officially owned was increased. The new border was 300 kilometers long and was mainly between two, long mountain ranges. The city that was being planned was to be build between two small mountain ranges, impenetrable at two sides, which would make it highly defensible. It had a river passing right next to it which meant they had easy access to a freshwater and fish. The land was fertile, meaning they would get better results from their farms.

 

In the end, it became clear that the winter was going to be a tiring one. They were to salvage what can be salvaged from the mountain and destroy it. They were to train to better adjust to the life on the ground. They were to prepare the land they were to move.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They were at it for hours, discussing every possibility and making plans. When the meeting ended, it was already past midday. Clarke rose from her seat slowly, her legs sleepy from sitting. Everyone had left except Octavia and Clarke was soon to leave as well, her stomach grumbling. She was hungry but she was also restless. So instead of cooking fires, she made a beeline to where Roan was sitting, Octavia in tow.

 

“Roan, up for a little spar?” she asked. She needed an outlet for the stress of the last few days, the stress of meeting with other clan leaders.

 

“For you? Always,” Roan cracked a smile. “Are you sure you up for it?” he asked. “From what I hear, the pauna got you bad,” he said, his eyes moving up and down her body.

 

“That, it did,” Clarke answered. “I’m fine. Besides, it’ll be good for me to learn to fight through pain,” she offered.

 

They made their way towards the sparring rings. Clarke took off her jacket and put it aside, and started stretching her muscles. Both she and Roan took their stance and they started circling each other.  When Roan first started training her, Clarke would attack immediately and without a plan and would fall on her ass within a minute. She learned to be patient with her opponents, Roan made sure of that. She also learned that her mind worked best when she was defending. She was very good at pinpointing an opponent's mistakes and shortcomings, and find a way to use those to her advantage, according to Roan. For now, the main avenues she needed improvement were her agility and keeping a straight face. She would never become stronger than an average warrior, it was a fool’s errand. So, Roan made sure she’d focus on getting faster and agiler.

 

So she waited and waited until Roan finally slashed his sword towards her. She deflected easily and countered with a half-hearted attack of her own. It wouldn’t do her any good to tire herself quickly against an opponent like Roan.

 

They continued on testing each other’s defenses, looking for a weak spot, neither accomplishing anything really. When the next time Roan swung his sword, Clarke backed from its range and moved back forward quickly and slashed. Roan barely moved out of the way, managing to get away with a shallow cut. He grinned at Clarke, “that was some quick feet.”

 

Clarke answered with only a nod and a slash which Roan deflected and rolled around to punch Clarke in the face. “Focus,” he ordered. “Don’t get cocky just because you drew the first blood.”

 

Clarke’s eyes watered from the pain but she persevered, nodding once again in response to Roan. The fight started to attract a crowd which was good. Clarke needed her people to want to learn how to fight. She’d order them regardless but a willing student was the best student.

 

They continued on with their training. With the first blood drawn from each side, they took it up a notch. They moved faster, attacked harder. Though Clarke knew Roan was taking it easy on her, not sparring but training her, she couldn’t help feel good about herself, her improvement clear in Roan’s face.

 

It was when Lexa joined the crowd of observers, Clarke’s focus faltered which Roan took advantage of without a thought. Clarke was in the middle of a wide, faltered swing so he deflected it and drove his sword’s hilt to Clarke’s face followed by a low kick that drove Clarke to the ground. “Fuck!” she exclaimed, her cheeks red with embarrassment.

 

Clarke waited for a breath before standing up again, twirling her sword, and attacked immediately, not giving Roan a chance to reprimand her. She swung to Roan’s head which he ducked under and Clarke followed with a strong kick to his head using her momentum. It was Roan’s turn to kiss the ground. “Good,” he complimented, standing up. “But my point stands.”

 

“Yeah, I know. Focus,” Clarke puffed, angry at herself for getting distracted and pissed at Roan for using it.

 

They kept at it for nearly an hour, giving each other variety of cuts though most of the damages Clarke took were focused on her arms and head. It was clear Roan was taking extra care not to hit her around her torso, which she appreciated.

 

“Thanks for the training,” Clarke said, wearing her coat back. “I needed it.”

 

“Anytime, Clarke,” Roan answered sweetly.

 

The blonde made her way to the cooking fires to get some food. With the tiredness of training combined with her already rumbling stomach, she was famished. The broth was delicious, though nowhere near what Polis had to offer. If they were lucky, at least one of the new additions to the camp would turn out to be a cook.

 

She saw Kane then, sitting on a log and enjoying a broth of his own, she joined him on the log, enjoying her own broth. “I need you to start on the consensus for our people. Indra’s will probably be ready by tonight. We need to start working on a schedule tomorrow,” Clarke ordered kindly.

 

“I will get on in right away Clarke,” Kane said, examining her with kind and knowing eyes. “I see you added on your already impressive number of scars,” he half mocked, half approved.

 

“We’ll see how you fare in a fight soon enough, old man,” Clarke grinned. She liked Kane, really. The now-humble man was always supportive of her and never shy to act around her age.

 

“Need I remind you I was chief of the guard in Ark?” Kane asked in a self-deprecating voice.

 

Clarke answered with a giggle. “Speaking of which, I want you to create a special team that can act as our own special forces. Three units led by you, Bellamy and Miller should do it. We have a comically low population compared to other clans, never mind clans like Ice Nation. We need small forces that capable of causing big losses to our enemies, should they exist,” Clarke ordered, firmly this time. “Fifteen to twenty people in each unit that excel in both firearms and melee weapons.”

 

Kane eyed her critically, considering his new orders. “Do you think war is coming?” he asked.

 

“From what I’ve seen and heard of this world, war is always coming. It’s not a question of if but a question of when. And when it comes, I want to be prepared,” she offered as an answer.

 

“Consider it done,” Kane said in a firm voice. “I will start on the consensus in a half an hour.” with that, he left.

 

Clarke took her sweet time finishing her broth. She watched her people as she did, most of whom were wary of the grounders but not hostile. ‘That’s good’, she thought. That much was expected and welcomed. Trust had to be earned. She made some small talk with Octavia, both avoiding anything of importance. They both earned a small respite.

 

With her food finished, she decided to spend some time alone so she sent Octavia away who did so not so begrudgingly. The chancellor made her way to the cottage she was sharing with Octavia and Lincoln for the time being. Since she came back to her people, she spent her alone time drawing, always, knowing that it helped her organize her thoughts and she intended to do just that. She opened the door and made her way towards the chest that held her ‘valuables’, which were basically her notepad and charcoal, and the dagger Lexa gave before the fall of the mountain. Her father’s watch was in this chest when not wrapped around her arm.

 

She had just opened the chest when she felt the presence of another behind her. Without thinking, she drew the dagger and whirled around. She was lucky enough to avoid getting stabbed but not lucky enough to avoid a cut to her left arm. Her attacker was a raven haired woman from Ice Nation if her facial scars were any indication. She twirled her dagger and launched at the woman, dodging another attempt at stabbing and managed to kick her opponent in the stomach. The assassin staggered backward, obviously not expecting the fluidity from a sky person. Clarke didn’t give the raven haired woman chance to recover, attacking rapidly and with all she got. Right hook to the jaw, slash, fake punch to the left, whirl around and another kick to her stomach. The unbalanced woman fell back, crashing through the door and falling out of the hut.

 

The assassin barely managed to get on her feet before a well-thrown dagger from Clarke lodged into her throat, ending the fight. When the blond made her way to her would-be-killer, she found that the camp had fallen into an eery silence, uncomprehending what just happened. She retrieved her dagger and stood back up, looking pissed. “I want every Ice Nation arrested!” she roared. “Do not harm them unless they resist,” she added to Bellamy who was running towards her in a hurry. “Camp is in locked down effective immediately. No one enters or leaves.”

 

She took deep breaths, trying to calm her mind but her vision kept swirling. She blinked rapidly, trying to regain her vision and composure without success. Just as she was falling, Bellamy caught her, holding her up. “Clarke, are you alright?”

 

She tried to nod, not quite managing. “I… I…” She felt the blackness swarm her, unable to do anything but.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lexa was in the middle of explaining Luna and Gilla what was discussed in the meeting when a commotion distracted her. She was about to continue the discussion when loud murmurs broke out around the camp, so she decided to investigate the cause. After a minute of walking and pushing those blocking her path, she saw Indra ordering everyone around her in angry tones. “Indra, report?”

 

“Heda, an Ice Nation assassin attacked Wanheda. She managed to best her attacker but fell,” Indra explained.

 

Before the general could continue, Lexa cut in. “Where is she now?”

 

“Bellamy took her to Abby, to medical.”

 

With that, Lexa was off running towards the ship, followed by Indra. She made her way inside but soon realized that she had no idea where anything was. She stopped a dark skinned boy, couple summers younger than her, to ask and found out that they were both headed the same way.

 

“Commander, Clarke ordered every Ice Nation member to be arrested,” young man whose name was Miller, Lexa learned, informed her. Lexa nodded only, not trusting her voice to not show the whirlwind of emotions she was feeling.

 

She forced her face into a mask of calmness though her insides spoke anything but. When they finally reached ‘the medical’, they were met with chaos. Abby and Jackson, who she met after the feast, were on Clarke, trying to figure out what was wrong with her. Bellamy was furiously pacing. Lincoln was trying to calm a shocked Octavia.

 

She decided to approach Bellamy as he was Clarke’s second-in-charge and only one that seemed mildly sane. “Bellamy, what happened?”

 

The young man looked at her with eyes filled with fury. “Your people happened,” he answered matter-of-factly. Lexa was taken aback. She decided to ignore the clear disrespect. There was a reason behind the boy’s anger. It was one of her people that attacked Clarke. She was responsible for this.

 

“Do not dare disrespect Heda,” Indra, who apparently followed her, spoke before Lexa could. The younger woman glared at the older.

 

Before things could escalate, Lincoln intervened. “An Ice Nation warrior attacked Clarke. She managed to kill her but was poisoned in the process,” he explained calmly, though anger was easy to see in his eyes.

 

Miller spoke next. “We arrested every Ice Nation member except the prince.”

 

“Take me to them,” Lexa ordered. The young man looked around unsure, clearly waiting for a confirmation from the older Blake.

 

“No,” Bellamy answered between his teeth. “Until Clarke gets better, I am in charge and I don’t trust you.”

 

If this was any other time and he was anyone else, Lexa would finish him off in an instant. She couldn’t though, not now, not here, not him. He was Clarke’s most trusted, her co-leader. This was a Skaikru camp. This was her fault. So she schooled her face and kept her calm. “Clarke is dying. We need to find out what poison was used and find an antidote,” Lexa said. “ and we need it now.”

 

“What do you suggest?” Bellamy asked, folding his arms over his chest. “Torture?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Bellamy seemed to contemplate his options. He couldn’t let Clarke die, not ever. He could try to get the information on his own but it didn’t work last time when they tortured Lincoln. The grounders, on the other hand, were much more ‘capable’ interrogators if Murphy’s state when he returned infected was any indication. He nodded stiffly. “I will go in with you. Pray that Clarke lives. Without her, we will be back to fighting each other. ”

 

“Show the way.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bellamy made his way to the lock up with the commander, Miller, and Indra. Nine prisoners were all stripped of anything that could be used as a weapon and cuffed. First in line was Echo, which he felt bad for. The woman saved his life and this was no way to repay that favor but he had no choice in the matter. Clarke came second only to Octavia.

 

The reluctant allies entered the small room-turned-holding-cell. Echo raised her head reluctantly to watch them enter. Her eyes were sad, sadder than he’d seen inside Mount Weather. When they first met, Echo’s eyes were filled with acceptance and defeat. Now, they were filled with disappointment and softness. “Bellamy,” she welcomed.

 

“Echo,” Bellamy answered, his voice steely and unwavering. “As you know, an Ice nation assassin attacked Clarke. She was poisoned. We need the cure.”

 

Echo eyed the commander warily. “Torture doesn’t work.”

 

“And what works,” the commander asked, her demeanor and voice all calm. “Sweet words and flowers?” she scoffed.

 

“Half of Ice nation members here are civilians. They wouldn’t know anything about poison. The other half are trained to withstand torture,” Echo explained. “Torture won’t get you answers.”

 

“Tell us what will then,” Bellamy pleaded, begging in his tone of voice and eyes.

 

“So Queen Nia could take my head?” the blonde asked mockingly.

 

“You are not in Azgeda. You are in Arkadia. She can’t get to you here. I can,” he bargained and warned.

 

“Let’s ask what Clarke thinks about that,” Echo answered.

 

“Clarke is lying there, dying because she wanted to help you!” Lexa barked.

 

Bellamy was taken aback by Lexa’s reaction, not her words but the raw emotion behind them. If Echo’s shock was any indication, this was unheard of.

 

“We can protect you,” Bellamy pleaded. “We already saved your life once.”

 

“So what? I’ll stay here and spend the rest of my life among Skaikru?” she mocked.

 

“Why not? What do you have in Azgeda to go back to?” Bellamy asked.

 

Echo kept her silence, eyeing him judgingly before turning to the commander with angry and untrusting eyes.

 

“Commander, would you excuse us for a moment?” Bellamy asked with an obviously fake respect. When commander opened her mouth to object, Bellamy’s voice turned a little hostile. “Now.” It was clearly an order, one which broke her to have to obey.

 

The commander’s eyes filled with animalistic fury but she did so anyway, begrudgingly. As soon as she left, Bellamy turned her attention back to the blonde. “Please, Echo. You are safe here. Help me so I can help you.”

 

The prisoner contemplated her options. She had clear orders from her queen, the queen who stole her from her home at a young age and turned her to one of her personal monsters, the queen who threatened her brother. She decided to trust the young man once again. “I have a brother back home,” Echo whispered, afraid to be heard.

 

Bellamy’s eyes widened in understanding. He had a sister. He knew. He understood. “What if I promise both of you a home here?” he asked. “You both will be safe here.”

 

“What will your Chancellor say to that?” Echo asked, still unsure.

 

“If she were here, she’d offer you the same. She’s a better person than I am,” Bellamy answered honestly. “I promise we will get your brother. He will be safe here.”

 

Echo considered for long, long minutes in silence, then nodded a barely-there nod. “I’m going to need the knife she was injured with.”

 

Bellamy went out to order Miller to bring the knife right away. She turned to Lexa, his eyes much softer than they were before. “She’s going to help us,” he said.

 

Lexa was finally able to let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding. She wasn’t relieved, not at all but at least now she had hope. The dark skinned boy returned with the knife soon enough. The trio made their way in. Bellamy moved to free Echo of her restraints and gave her the knife without a second thought. Lexa couldn’t help but watch the blonde suspiciously. Her distrust for anything Azgeda was embedded to her DNA after Costia, after long and tiring years of war. She hated that she held prejudice but it couldn’t be helped.

 

Echo smelled the knife a couple times, trying to identify the poison. After the third sniff, she gave it back to Bellamy. “She’s dead,” Echo proclaimed. “This is a fast acting poison made from a plant that only grows in Azgeda. I have the cure but it is too late for it to be of any use,” she said in defeat and like that, Lexa’s heart stopped and mind went numb.

 

Bellamy’s eyes widened in shock but he didn’t give up, he couldn’t. Clarke was his friend, his closest. She was the only one he’d trust with Octavia’s life, perhaps even more so than he’d trust himself. He would not, could not let her die. “No!” he roared. “It is not too late. Clarke will not die,” he shook his head in denial. “Where is the cure?”

 

Echo’s first reflex argue but decided against it. ‘Maybe she really is Wanheda and she’ll be alright?’ she tried to reason, tried to hope, with herself. “In my bag, there is this purple flower. Brew two leafs and add a really small chunk of red moss after it’s brewed. Make sure she drinks every two candle mark. She’ll be very thirsty if and when she wakes up.”

 

“Thank you.” like that, Bellamy ran off.

 

Lexa didn’t. She was incapable of moving. She wasn’t incapable of anger and hatred though. “You should get on your knees and start praying to whatever god you believe in because if she doesn’t make it…”

 

“I’m defying my queen’s orders,” Echo complained, then mentally kicked herself for saying too much. Thankfully, Lexa didn’t have the mental capacity or focus, right now, to hear the underlying truth.

 

After a couple minutes, Anya walked in, worried about her Heda, her fos, and dragged her out. When the blonde was sure no one would hear them, she finally spoke. “What’s wrong?”

 

Lexa was unfocused, a little too broken, and she sounded like it. “She said we were too late. She said Clarke will die.”

 

“Pfft,” Anya disagreed. “That girl is far too stubborn to die so easily.”

 

Lexa looked at Anya unbelievingly. “How many people do you know that survived an Azgeda poison?” she asked.

 

“How many people do you know that managed to escape from the mountain?” she counter-asked. “She managed to surprise us time and time again,” the blond drove her point home. “Don’t give up just yet.”

 

They slowly made their way to the medical bay. Lexa feeling a little more hopeful but still unsure. Titus’s teachings were beating on her head like a war drum. ‘Love is a weakness.’ ‘Love is a weakness.’ ‘Love is a weakness.’ ‘Love is a weakness.’ ‘Love is a weakness.’

 

She found it hard to focus on the second part of the teaching. ‘If you let it become one.’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clarke woke up to hushed whispers. “She’s stable. I think she’ll wake up soon.” “I will kill them all!” “You can’t die. You are all I have left.”  “I told her this was a mistake.” “Ste yuj, Clarke.” “I’m sorry for all I’ve said.” “Please, don’t die.” “Ai hod yu in.” “I will kill every Azgeda!” “Yu gonplei nou ste odon nowe.”

 

‘That must be an awkward conversation’ was the first thing Clarke thought. She found it hard to open her eyes but she pushed through it. When finally her eyes adjusted to the light, she saw Bellamy and Octavia talking to each other in one corner and Lincoln discussing something with Anya in the other. “Would you just shut up so I can get a good night sleep?” she said, her voice hoarse.

 

The room descended in a silence immediately, followed by rushed footsteps and a widely smiling Octavia. “It’s already afternoon, sleeping beauty.” Her relief clear on her face.

 

“Nope, not ready for your sarcasm yet, grounder pounder,” Clarke replied hoarsely.

 

Lincoln was next to her bed in an instant with a glass of water. Clarke drank all of it in two gulps, “Thanks.”

 

“Welcome back to the land of the living, princess,” Bellamy said, clearly relieved.

 

“Thanks. What did I miss?” she asked.

 

“Nothing much,” Anya answered. “You’ve been unconscious for only two months.

 

Clarke almost drowned on the second glass of water Lincoln brought her before recognizing the mocking tone. “You know, it’s not nice to mock someone who barely survived an assassination attempt.”

 

Anya smirked at her. “Look at me and tell me how much I care.”

 

“Oh, you care. I know you do. You’d be devastated if I died.”

 

“What would I ever do without you?”

 

“Come on, admit it. You love me,” Clarke mocked.

 

Anya schooled her features and took couple steps towards the younger blonde. “I do,” she husked and the room went into a state of complete shock. “Not love you,” she finished and Clarke took a deep breath.

 

“Damn, I was scared for a second there,” she said in a relieved voice.

 

Anya’s face contorted into a fake hurt. “Why would you say that?”

 

“Well, considering it took you beating the shit out of me to consider an alliance, I don’t want to know what you would do to me if you actually loved me.”

 

“Trust me,” came Lexa’s voice. “She’s unbearable.”

 

“Knew it,” Clarke said cockily. “So, what happened while I was asleep? And how long I was gone really?”

 

The commander answered her. “You've been asleep for two days. Per your orders, Bellamy apprehended every Azgeda member.”

 

Bellamy continued the account. “Echo told us how to make the antidote. In return, I promised I’d help her get her brother from Azgeda and we’d take them in.”

 

Kane and Abby entered the room right after Bellamy finished. “I told you to come and get me if she woke up,” Abby said in a half-hearted angry voice. “Clarke, honey, how are you feeling?” she asked.

 

“I feel better than I would’ve guessed,” she answered, smiling. “Are you guys sure I was poisoned and not just too sleepy?”

 

Abby looked at her reprimanding. “I don’t think you sweat and puke this much when you sleep,” she said.

 

“So that’s why I feel so light?” Clarke joked.

 

“Let’s just hope you didn’t lose any weight from your boobs,” Octavia joked untimely. Clarke felt her cheeks redden. Everyone in the room turned to the young girl judgingly. “What?”

 

“Shut up, Raven junior,” Clarke puffed. “You guys hate me, don’t you?” she pouted. “None of you offered to bring me any food.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After eating an unholy amount of food, and puking some of it right afterward, Clarke decided to woman it up and decided to get back to work, horizontally for now. She demanded Bellamy bring Echo to her, ignoring her mother and commander’s protests. When Bellamy made his way in with the said woman, she ordered everyone except Bellamy and Lexa to leave the room.

 

She examined the slightly older blonde warily. “I hear I owe my life to you. Thank you.”

 

Echo didn’t answer but nodded.

 

“Why would an assassin of Nia save my life?” she asked.

 

Lexa’s eyes widened in a ‘eureka’ moment while Bellamy seemed perplexed.

 

“How did you know that?” the said assassin asked.

 

“The moment you entered the room, you determined possible exit routes and what you could use as a weapon. You know quite a bit about poisons. Your body language tells me you are highly trained but you have no markings of a warrior which makes me think you don’t want people to know your affiliations. Assassin,” Clarke explained her reasoning.

 

“How did I miss that?” Lexa asked herself.

 

“You destroyed the mountain and helped save me,” Echo explained.

 

“And also Bellamy offered a safe heaven for you and your brother,” Clarke finished for her.

 

“Yes, that also,” Echo echoed, hopeful but guarded.

 

“I will try my best to help you bring your brother here, you have my word on that,” Clarke accepted without a resistance. “But first, I need you to tell me who else received orders from Queen fucking Nia to kill me.”

 

Echo seemed hesitant, understandably, but relented easily. “Four of us received orders to assassinate you when the chance presents itself.”

 

“How were you captured by the mountain?” Clarke asked. Seeing the question in the other blonde’s eyes, she continued, “Why were you in the range of the mountain? It’s a long way from your home.”

 

Echo seemed hesitant, probably due to certain commander’s presence. “You will not be punished for anything you say here. Is she Commander?” she demanded.

 

Lexa didn’t put up a resistance. She knew the value of an informant and Echo was well on her way to becoming one of Clarke’s people. She trusted that once Echo really sees what kind of a leader Clarke is, she’d follow the blonde to the ends of the world, just like Lincoln. “I don’t have any power within these walls,” she said with a nod.

 

“I was on my way to assassinate fleimkepa,” Echo answered, turning to the commander.

 

“Fleimkepa? Titus? Why would Nia want Titus dead?” Clarke asked.

 

“Because with him dead, a new flaimkepa had to be chosen by the council of elders. If she wanted Titus dead, Nia must have a way to manipulate the elders,” Lexa mused. “Would you be willing to testify to this in front of clan leaders?” she asked, turning to the assassin.

 

“No. Nia would kill my brother in an instant if she knew I talked to you, let alone go against her.”

 

The duo continued questioning Echo for nearly an hour while Bellamy watched on with a blank face and stormy eyes. The woman was a fountain of useful information but nothing damning. She spoke of a small rebellion on the rise, thought to be headed by none other than the wayward prince of winter lands.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the interrogation, Bellamy and Echo left two young leaders alone. Lexa was seated next to Clarke’s bed since the middle of said debrief. She gazed over the blonde with soft eyes.

 

“What do you make of Echo?” the blonde asked, wanting to, nay, needing to fill the charged silence.

 

Lexa thought about it for a short time before answering. “Her loyalty seems to be to her brother only. I think you can win her over if you manage to rescue him.”

 

“And that’s okay? I mean she’d not be one of your people anymore.”

 

“She’d be under Nia’s thumb,” Lexa explained. “I want what’s best for my people, Clarke. Even the ones that are… not so good. You are a good leader, one who I hope one day will help me lead the coalition. So, yes, you can steal my people if you earn their loyalty,” she said, smiling.

 

Clarke seemed thoughtful for a second. “What do you mean help you lead?” she asked.

 

Lexa swallowed visibly, nervously. “If Skaikru joins coalition one day, you’d be sworn to me. You are already a power to reckon with, Clarke, I don’t know if you noticed. You are respected and feared more than anyone, except me,” she explained. “That’s why Nia wants to kill you. She thinks by killing you, she’d have the necessary capital to challenge me. She’s not wrong. You are the only real threat to my rule.”

 

Saying, Clarke was surprised would be an offensive understatement, bordering on lying. She was shocked. She knew as ‘Wanheda’, she was respected, maybe even feared, but a threat to Lexa? “What? Why? I mean, sure I proved myself capable and all that but threat to your rule?”

 

“Some of my people even went as far to demand I kill you,” Lexa further explained.

 

“Let me guess, Titus?”

 

“He’s one of those demanding your death, yes. But fear not, Clarke. I have no intention of seeing you get hurt… more than you already have.”

 

Clarke was unsure as to what to think. “Thanks, I guess. Though, this would’ve been nice to know before I came to Polis with just a handful of people.”

 

“I wouldn’t let anyone harm you, Clarke,” Lexa explained, her voice almost as soft as her eyes. She meant it, that much was clear.

 

Clarke swallowed thickly. “Lexa, I…”

 

“Rest Clarke. I’m glad you are okay,” Lexa husked.

 

“Good night, Lexa.”

 

“Good night, Klark.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to play a little game with you guys. Clarke hears 10 unrelated sentences. Leave your guesses in the comments and if true, I will let you name an OC that will come up soon. 10 sentences for 10 names. Thank you for playing... and reading of course.

**Author's Note:**

> I will try to update once a week or every other week but please forgive me if I miss the deadline every now and then. I won't use trigedasleng other than the common phrases, instead I will mention when the characters use that lovely language, either by outright saying so or using specific usage of names: Clarke (gonasleng) Klark (trigedasleng)
> 
> Thank you for reading.


End file.
